Sounds of SAND

Dr. Kamilah Majied , MSW, PhD, is a contemplative inclusivity and equity consultant, mental health therapist, clinical educator, researcher, and internationally engaged consultant on building inclusivity and equity using meditative practices. She is the author of Joyfully Just: Black Wisdom and Buddhist Insights for Liberated Living (Sounds True, 2024), and has authored many articles and chapters,...

In this SAND Community Gathering (September 2024) Zaya and Maurizio sat down with Jess Semaan , poet, psychotherapist and facilitator to explore the intersection of poetry and grief in the context of genocide. They drew from her research on genocide, as well as her personal and professional experiences, Jess tended to our psycho-spiritual profound sorrow and loss in this time. By giving voice to t...

In this episode, Michael Reiley engages in an insightful discussion with Michael Joshin Thiele, a honeybee conservationist and president of Apis Arborea. The conversation explores the intersections of cultural, spiritual, and ecological dimensions of natural honeybee life. Michael Joshin Thiele is an apiculture consultant and founder and president of Apis Arborea, a nonprofit focused on honeybee c...

Welcome to our 100th episode of the Sounds of SAND podcast, marking two years since we launched on September 8, 2022. As SAND grows and evolves with the changing times, we aim to integrate—not abandon—our foundational themes of spiritual awakening, embodiment, consciousness, and scientific wonder, while also confronting pressing global challenges such as environmental collapse, indigenous resilien...

Dr. Vimalasara (Valerie) Mason-John M.A. (Hon. Doc), is a founding facilitator of Compassionate Inquiry, and is the author of 10 books, including the award winning book, “Eight Step Recovery: Using The Buddha’s Teachings to Overcome Addiction” and “Detox Your Heart: Meditations for Emotional Trauma”. There are 8 Step Recovery meetings held in several continents. And they are co-founder of the trai...

Andrew Holecek is a renowned author and humanitarian who teaches internationally on spirituality, meditation, lucid dreaming, and the art of dying. He has studied sleep yoga, bardo yoga, and other traditional practices with living masters in India and Nepal. Andrew’s books include Dreams of Light , Dream Yoga, and Reverse Meditation . His work has appeared in Psychology Today , Parabola , Lion’s R...

Parvathy Baul  is a practitioner, performer and teacher of the Baul tradition from Bengal, India. She studied closely with two of the most respected Baul Gurus of the previous generation, Sri Sanatan Das Thakur Baul and Sri Shashanko Goshai. ​According to her Guru's vision, Parvathy Maa has created Sanatan Siddhashram - as a place of learning, practicing and preserving the oral history of the...

Gigi Azmy merges 28 years of spiritual insights with scientific psychological research to guide individuals toward a profound realization of love—far beyond cultural and spiritual misconceptions. A trailblazer in her field, she introduced trauma healing into spiritual awakening workshops, emphasizing the importance of not only awakening, but also healing and evolving. Gigi excels at something seem...

In this episode we present excerpts from the recent conversation (June 2024) as part of SAND’s “ Conversations on Palestine ” around the premiere of the film Where Olive Trees Weep hosted by the directors of the film and co-founders of SAND, Zaya and Maurizio Benazzo. You can watch this full conversation and 22 others. SAND has created a program with leading historians, spiritual teachers, trauma...

Federico Faggin is one of the greatest luminaries of high technology alive today. A physicist by education, he is the inventor of the microprocessor and the MOS silicon gate technology, both of which underlie the modern world's entire information technology. With the knowledge and experience of a lifetime in cutting-edge fields, Federico now turns his attention to consciousness and the nature of r...

Monica Gagliano is a research associate professor in evolutionary ecology and former fellow of the Australian Research Council. She is currently based at Southern Cross University, where she directs the Biological Intelligence Lab funded by the Templeton World Charity Foundation. She has pioneered the brand-new research field of plant bioacoustics, for the first time experimentally demonstrating t...

In this episode we present excerpts from the recent conversation (June 2024) between Ashira Darwish & V as part of SAND’s “Conversations on Palestine” around the premiere of the film Where Olive Trees Weep hosted by the directors of the film and co-founders of SAND, Zaya and Maurizio Benazzo. https://whereolivetreesweep.com/ You can watch this full conversation and 22 others. SAND has created...

In this episode we present excerpts from the recent conversation (June 2024) between Dr. Gabor Maté  and Tara Brach as part of SAND’s “Conversations on Palestine” around the premiere of the film  Where Olive Trees Weep hosted by the directors of the film and co-founders of SAND, Zaya and Maurizio Benazzo . You can watch this full conversation and 22 others. SAND has created a program wit...

Dr. Rupa Marya discusses her work at the intersection of medicine, health, land, and justice. She explains the concept of deep medicine, which looks at the health impacts of colonialism and colonial capitalism and emphasizes the need to address the root causes of illness. Dr. Rupa Marya is a physician, activist, writer, and composer at UC, San Francisco. Her work intersects climate, health, and ra...

Muslim Spirituality Illuminating the Path to Freedom: An exploration of how the spiritual heart of the Islamic tradition can inspire and fuel contemporary struggles for liberation, justice and humanity. Through their unique lens, this panel of visionaries modeled how spiritual life is not an escape from systemic injustice, but a revolutionary process which strengthens our collective capacity to tr...

Hadar Cohen shares her deep connection to her Middle Eastern Jewish ancestry and the intertwining of mysticism and activism in her work. She discusses the complexity of her Arab Jewish identity and the impact of colonialism on the narrative of Arab Jews. Hadar also delves into the weaponization of trauma and the need for a multi-religious, secular society in a free Palestine. The conversation cove...

Today, June 6, 2024, we’re celebrating the release of SAND’s new film Where Olive Trees Weep . And to celebrate the launch of the film, we welcome you to Donate and Watch the film by visiting WhereOliveTreesWeep.com . Donating to watch the film will also enroll you in a 21-day online event called “ The World People’s Premiere ” which happening online from June 6-27 with conversations, music, poetr...

A recording of excerpts from a live SAND Community Gathering hosted by Zaya and Maurizio Benazzo from Apr 20, 2024 . Storyteller Haneen Sabbah, a Palestinian Falahi woman and mother from Gaza, guided us through an experience of the vibrant and thriving place Gaza once was, before it became a pile of rubble. She transports us to the rich history and culture of this region through her enchanting dru...

  In this episode with filmmakers, producers, and founders of Science & Nonduality (SAND) Zaya and Maurizio Benazzo discuss their new film, Where Olive Trees Weep , which explores the impact of colonialism and intergenerational trauma on indigenous cultures, particularly in the occupied West Bank and Palestine. The film serves as a call to action for spiritual activism and aims to amplify...

Osprey Orielle Lake is the Founder and Executive Director of Women’s Earth & Climate Action Network, International ( WECAN ). She works nationally and internationally with grassroots, Indigenous and business leaders, policy-makers and scientists to promote climate justice, resilient communities, and a just transition to a clean energy future. Osprey is Co-chair of International Advocacy for th...

A recording of excerpts from a live SAND Community Gathering hosted by Zaya and Maurizio Benazzo. In these times of unbearable anguish, as the already beleaguered Palestinian community is being massacred and starved before our astonished eyes, our own grieving flows into the sea of human suffering and we remember that we belong to each other. Mirabai Starr is an award-winning author of creative no...

Mattias Daly is Taoist practitioner and a professional translator with a degree in acupuncture and a master’s in Chinese Literature. He was inducted into the Longmen lineage of Complete Reality Daoism by Abbess Liu of the Three Purities Monastery in Jilin province, China in 2013. He primarily translates for the National Palace Museum in Taipei and the Chinese Taipei PEN quarterly. His new translat...

A recording of excerpts from a SAND Community Gathering hosted by Zaya and Maurizio Benazzo. Trauma has a severe impact that extends far beyond the individual survivor. It ripples through families, communities, and generations in ways both seen and unseen. Yet there is a path forward — through courageously sharing our stories and tapping into the body’s innate wisdom. In this episode, Peter openly...

Reem (DRĖĖĖMY) Abdou is a native Egyptian international interdisciplinary sound artist, embodiment and meditation guide, curator, cultural worker, and community building founder of the inclusive global impact agency for women+ & BIPOC holistic artists: The Collective BAE. As an intentional DJ and spoken word poet, her work harnesses music, movement, and meditation to activate real shifts at th...

Rev Deborah L Johnson (Rev D) is a dynamic organizer, strategist, facilitator, public speaker, and spoken word artist, known for her ability to bring clarity to complex and emotionally charged issues with humor and compassion. As an organizational consultant specializing in cultural diversity, she serves the public, private, non-profit, and military sectors. Her clients have included, MCA Uni...