Raghu interviews Leonard Pickard about his early involvement in psychedelics, zen practice, his 20-year incarceration, and building resilience via mindfulness.

Leonard will be joining Raghu, Zach Leary, Trevor Hall and others at a Ram Dass Legacy Event in Denver on December 12th, 2024. For more info, click HERE.

This week on Mindrolling, Leonard and Raghu chat about:

• Transformative experiences as not dependent on substances
• Delving into the great leaders of the sixties and honoring Ram Dass
• The psychedelic revolution that is currently taking place
• Our total dependence on one another
• The way that music transformed throughout the 1960’s
• Leonard’s time at the San Francisco Zen Center studying Buddhism, meditation, and yoga
• Carrying our practice out into the world
• How Buddhism prepared Leonard for years of incarceration
• The beauty of spiritual practice and growing ones heart

Check out Leonard’s book, The Rose of Paracelsus, which he wrote while incarcerated, to explore more about psychedelics, spirituality, science, and human evolution.

About Leonard Pickard:

Once known as the Acid King, Leonard Pickard is a former research associate in neurobiology at Harvard Medical School, Harvard fellow in drug policy at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, and Deputy Director of the Drug Policy Analysis Program at UCLA. His 1996 prediction of the fentanyl epidemic was published by RAND in The Future of Fentanyl and Other Synthetic Opioids. Leonard Pickard is one of two people convicted in the largest LSD manufacturing case in history. On July 27, 2020, Pickard was granted compassionate release from federal prison 20 years into his sentence.

“Transformative experience, if it is to be valid, cannot be drug dependent. It would be a terrible offense to think that such beautiful insights were dependent upon a mere substance.” – Leonard Pickard

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Amidst election results, environmental crises and more, Raghu and James Baraz consider how to awaken joy in times of disillusion.

To learn more about James’ work with the environment and to see how you can help, check out One Earth

This time on Mindrolling, James and Raghu have a talk on:

• Vulnerability and unconditional love
• Awakening Joy in times of disillusion
• James’ definition of Joy as the sense of well-being
• Making space for all the feelings we feel
• Training ourselves to look for the good
• How we have lost our connection to the land
• Being courageous and coming from love
• Indigenous and Buddhist teachings that point us to our place in the world
• Understanding the consequences of our actions
• Sila and acting with integrity as a path to inner peace
• Why meditation is so essential
• The joy of connection and a closing gratitude practice

About James Baraz

James Baraz has taught mindfulness meditation since 1978 and is co-founder of the world-renowned Spirit Rock Meditation Center in Woodacre, California. He is co-author of two books Awakening Joy: 10 Steps to a Happier Life and Awakening Joy for Kids. James has taught the Awakening Joy course to over 24,000 people from 30 countries since 2003, as well as retreats and workshops in the U.S. and internationally. Learn more about James HERE.

“Actions have consequences, that is what karma is. What we do now has an effect on what’s to come in our children and future generations. Those are the dots that somehow the rich, supposedly brilliant minds, haven’t seen.” – James Baraz

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Dr. Dan Engle joins Raghu to discuss how to integrate the ineffable into our daily lives after profound psychedelic experiences.

In this episode, Dr. Engle and Raghu have a conversation about:

• How Dr. Dan’s life was profoundly changed after a serious accident
• Integrating psychiatry and neurology together
• Dr. Dan’s introduction to psychedelics in the jungle
• How the psychedelic experience opens us up but can’t be sustained
• Integration of the ineffable into our daily lives
• Looking at science and spirituality in a productive way
• The fundamental questions that arise out of the psychedelic experience
• Psychedelics as a catalyst for personal change and authentic self-discovery
• The soul as a drop in the ocean of spirit
• Regressive hypnotherapy and unwinding past life events
• Continuing to evolve toward greater understanding
• Psychiatry’s place in spiritual endeavors
• Living into the movie of we and building upon pillars of wisdom

About Dr. Dan Engle:

Dan Engle, MD, is a psychiatrist with a clinical practice that combines aspects of regenerative medicine, psychedelic research, integrative spirituality, and peak performance. Dr. Engle is an international consultant to several global healing centers facilitating the use of long-standing indigenous plant medicines for healing and awakening. He is the Founder of

Full Spectrum Medicine, a psychedelic integration and educational platform; and Thank You Life, a non-profit funding stream supporting access to psychedelic therapies. Dr. Engle is the author of The Concussion Repair Manual: A Practical Guide to Recovering from Traumatic Brain Injuries, as well as his new book, A Dose of Hope: A Story of MDMA-Assisted Psychotherapy. To learn more about Dr. Dan’s offerings check out his website HERE.

“The ceremony space, the experience with the ineffable, that opens us up (ideally) to our more divine nature, our more true self. That’s the catalyst. But, the real work happens in the integration. How do we make that real for the rest of our lives?” – Dr. Dan Engle

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Offering a beautiful ode to India, Raghu and Andrew Harvey discuss divine truths and the oxymoron of beauty and pain.

This time on Mindrolling, Andrew and Raghu go over:

• Andrew’s experience being born and growing up in India
• India as a sacred world filled with divine beauty and pain
• The divine feminine and masculine
• Raghu’s experience bringing his father to India
• The gift of Ram Dass and tying Hinduism to modern life
• Revelations of incarnation
• Andrew Harvey’s return to India and encountering great beings
• Being mindful of our anger and transforming our emotions

About Andrew Harvey:

Andrew Harvey is a British author, religious scholar and teacher of mystic traditions, known primarily for his popular nonfiction books on spiritual or mystical themes. Andrew Harvey is also the founder and director of The Institute for Sacred Activism, an international organization focused on inviting concerned people to take up the challenge of our contemporary global crises by becoming inspired, effective, and practical agents of institutional and systemic change, in order to create peace and sustainability. Check out Andrew Harvey’s many book offerings HERE.

“Being born in India is for me the absolutely central and original and primordial and evolutionary event for me. That’s it. Because to be born in India is to be born into sacred world and a sacred culture that is alive with divine beauty, pain, passion, magic, veracity, truth. That’s India. – Andrew Harvey

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Influencer and cosmetic artist Chrisspy shares how Ram Dass inspired her to change her life after a traumatic accident.

In this episode of Mindrolling, Chrisspy and Raghu discuss:

- Chrisspy’s near-death experience and how it transformed her life

- Discovering Ram Dass, Eastern Philosophy, and connecting to spirituality

- Elements of influencer culture that are toxic

- Chrisspy’s decision to delete social media for a year and go on a spiritual journey

- Not taking ourselves so seriously or castigating ourselves

- The pressure to share every part of ourselves online

- Connecting through storytelling

- Gratitude practice and paying attention to what we take for granted

- Making a positive impact by showing up for others

- The ways that we view love versus real love

About Chrisspy:

Christina, aka Chrisspy, is the second-youngest of four children, raised on non-sugar cereals and 2% milk, in a home chock full of bluster and strong opinion. Displaying a penchant for the artistic from an early age, in order to make her voice heard, she learned to be concise, bold, and avant-garde. After working for MAC cosmetics in San Francisco, she moved to Los Angeles, earned a bachelor’s degree from UCLA, and began posting pictures online to showcase her make-up techniques under the name, Chrisspy. She hopes to curry favor and influence friends, but more importantly, she hopes to empower women with the tools to look their best! Check out her website HERE and find her @Chrisspy on Youtube, Tik-Tok, and Instagram.

“I didn’t feel comfortable acting as a reality star in certain ways. It felt performative and it robbed me of so many experiences because I always was gauging is this shareable, how is the audience going to like this, instead of just living it.” – Chrisspy

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Anita Sanchez and Raghu Markus confront the impacts of global warming, celebrate indigenous traditions, and explore the deep connection of nature and humanity.

This week, Raghu and Anita Sanchez have a compelling conversation on:

• Anita's recent journey into the Amazon Rainforest
• The intense impact of global warming on Amazonian landscapes
• The strength and leadership of indigenous amazonian women
• Climate change as the biggest threat to national security
• Viewing plants and nature as our relatives
• Asking our ancestors for answers in our dreams
• The way that mother earth cares for us
• Getting rid of the illusion of separateness
• Anita's epiphany at a Sundance ceremony
• Getting involved with protecting our planet
• Reconnecting to sacred, ritualistic ways of being
• Indigenous plant medicine and the potency of Ayahuasca
• Appropriation of indigenous practices
• What the four sacred gifts are

About Anita Sanchez, Ph.D:

Anita was born into a Midwest family that was economically poor, yet rich in Mexican-American and Nahua (also known as Aztec) heritage. Fortified with the strength of her elders and connection to the earth, she became the first in her family of over one hundred first cousins to earn a doctorate degree. She has gone on to a career as an international transformational leader.

Dr. Sanchez is committed to bridging indigenous wisdom and science with or contemporary work and life, to support our individual wholeness and collective conscious evolution in partnership with People, Spirit, and the Earth. With her loving spirit, presence and skill, Anita inspires people around the world to discover and trust their gifts, to become life-giving connections to all, in service and joy.

Learn more about Anita’s work at anita-sanchez.com and check out her own podcast on Be Here Now Network, The Four Sacred Gifts

“80% of the most biodiverse places left on this earth are lands that indigenous people live on. Yet, we’re only 5 or 6 % of the world’s population. That’s not a coincidence, that’s because we have this relationship.”– Anita Sanchez, Ph.D

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Bridging science and spirit, Stephanie Karzon Abrams chats with Raghu about integrating psychedelics and soul into the medical community.

This time on Mindrolling, Raghu and Stephanie delve into:

• Out-of-body experiences through music
• Addressing identity changes after Traumatic Brain Injuries
• Utilizing plants to promote better health
• Reconnecting to ourselves through psychedelic therapies
• Trauma from displacement and immigration
• Bridging science and spirit by integrating holistic views into medicine
• The mental health impact of physical health issues
• Getting the medical world to want to heal the mind and soul as well as the physical
• The ways that psychedelic experiences can change us
• The importance of having a guide through psychedelic experiences
• Sitting with discomfort and being open to the lessons
• How music expands our minds and creates a space for connection

About Stephanie Karzon Abrams:

Stephanie Karzon Abrams, a neuropharmacologist with a Masters of Science in Clinical Pharmacology, is the founding advisor of Beyond The Bench consultancy. The firm provides science, research, operations, and strategy solutions to organizations and clinics in the natural product, plant medicine, and psychedelic sectors. A recognized leader in shaping the future of integrative and innovative healthcare, Stephanie Karzon Abrams champions the exploration of novel therapeutic approaches. Her interests extend beyond neurology, encompassing plant medicines, women’s health, and the potential of music to enhance healing. Check out Stephanie’s music label, Public Secret.

“Anybody who has any kind of health challenge will have their mental health affected. There is an impact. Just treating that illness or symptom is not enough; you need to heal the mind. You need to heal the soul. They’re all interconnected. There’s no reason why medical science, especially when we talk about psychedelics, can’t address all of that. For me, that’s the ultimate goal, if I can use research as a tool to achieve this then I’ve succeeded.” – Stephanie Karzon Abrams

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Written in the key of grief and the melody of praise, Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer sits down with Raghu to discuss her newest poetry book, The Unfolding.

Enjoy your own copy of The Unfolding to read Rosemerry’s heart-opening poems! Purchase the book HERE

This week, tune into Rosemerry and Raghu’s conversation on:

• The loss of Rosemerry’s son and father
• Living through seasons of extreme grief
• Understanding the gift of a poem
• Oppositional feelings experienced at the same time (pain + joy, etc.)
• Recognizing how desperately we need eachother
• The Grand Quilt, The Medicine of Surrender, and more poems written and read by Rosemerry
• Brave prayers and the things that open us / help us grow
• Inspiration from Gregory Orr and Leonard Cohen
• How grief strips us naked and makes us vulnerable
• Raghu sends us off with a beautiful Kabir poem from the book Painting from the Palette of Love

About Rossemerry Trommer:

Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer is an American poet associated with Colorado. She was Poet Laureate of San Miguel County, Colorado from 2006–2010, and was named Poet Laureate of Colorado’s Western Slope by the Telluride Institute from 2015–2017. Most recently, Rosemerry published The Unfolding, a book of poetry exploring grief. Rosemerry was featured on TEDxTalks to discuss the art of changing metaphors and created an album of poetry called Dark Praise with Steve Law. Check out Rosemerry’s website, Wordwoman, and her daily poetry blog, A Hundred Falling Veils. You can also join Rosemerry in an immersive daily experience of poetry and reflection on the Ritual app.

“So many people reached out to help me… they’d say, ‘What can we do?’ And I’d just say, ‘Open me. Help me stay open. Please, help me stay open.’” – Rosemerry Trommer

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