Spiritual Sexual Shamanic Podcast

Do you ever feel like you’re being held back in life by events and circumstances that are out of your control? Maybe you find yourself in uncomfortable, even terrible, circumstances thinking to yourself: how did I even get here? And, how do I get out? These are questions that arrived powerfully in the life of Carolyn Elliot, transformational guide and author of the book, Existential Kink . We won’...

In this, his third episode with the Spiritual, Sexual, Shamanic Podcast, ISTA Lead Facilitator and member of ISTA’s governing council, Raffaello Manacorda, speaks about shamanic leadership.  What is shamanic leadership? Raffa explains that it’s an essential component of taking responsibility within groups of people. Instead of competing for powerful positions within organizations and then ruling t...

ISTA Facilitator Nimai Sun Ra grew up without a father. As a result, he has felt, perhaps more urgently than most, the need to become his own father figure. To provide himself stability, guidance, and the strength that a biological father might often provide.  In recent years, he has been on a journey of extending that experience of fatherhood from himself to his own two young sons. As he tells us...

Growing up in rural Austria, ISTA facilitator Ashisha Arpana’s favorite toy was her imagination. She gleefully played with it, eventually turning what happened in her mind's eye into a career in film and media.  The imagination, she tells us in this deep and exploratory episode, is one of the most important keys for us in letting go of the old, disempowering stories we tell ourselves and gett...

In this episode, Usha talks with ISTA Facilitator Aya Kamānakai about reclaiming sexuality as a pathway to personal empowerment and spiritual connection. Growing up in the Christian church, Aya was taught to shut down her sexuality. As she moved into adulthood, she found herself unable to access pleasure in her body and had resigned herself to a life without it. This was until, in desperation, she...

Picture this: you’re in a long, long-term relationship with another person. You both have dynamic, ‘larger-than-life’ personalities. You have four kids together, and busy schedules full of big projects. It seems almost impossible to fit in time for each other. Life is interesting, but you’re realizing how easy it is to put off moments of deeper connection. Then, one day, almost out of nowhere, you...

If you've ever been to a spiritual retreat, you might know that they can be totally blissful places. Dancing, good food, vibrant people, deep teaching. Paradise!  Yes, they can involve difficult emotions, and sometimes the teachings can be complex, but that's often part of the experience. So, what happens when it all comes to an end and you have to head back home and, somehow, put all yo...

In this episode of the Spiritual, Sexual, Shamanic Podcast, ISTA facilitator Aaron Kleinerman delves into the topic of men's work and the importance of creating safe spaces for men to explore their vulnerability and receptivity. Through many years of holding these kinds of spaces, Aaron has found that there is great benefit in men embracing both their masculine and feminine energies. It can l...

In this episode, Usha talks with s*x engineer, Elisa Caro. An Apprentice Facilitator with ISTA, Elisa dives into one of her favorite topics: the many different kinds of orgasm that people in femme bodies can experience.  Elisa covers some of these juicy and, some may consider, controversial areas of discovery:  how femme bodies are wired for pleasure the importance of breast play the difference be...

Dos conceptos que suelen encontrarse separados, pero ¿Cuál es la relacion entre ellos? En esta conversación con Luis, KamalaDevi McClure nos habla sobre: El uso del Eros como medicina sagrada, su experiencia como figura poliamorosa, coach y madre, y el potencial del chamanismo para sanar heridas sexuales. El matrimonio Interior, y cómo el cosmos está contenido dentro de cada uno de nosotros. El ap...

When ISTA Apprentice Dane Tomas got started in spirituality, his focus was on ascension. "It was 'go up to the higher realms'; it was Buddhism, it was psychedelics, it was meditation, and it was all so wonderful," he says.  But he started to realize that, although the people he was hanging out with there "in Rainbow Dolphin Land," were mentally and, maybe, ethereally...

What does my soul really want, and how do I dream it? Then, how do I make it a reality? In this episode, ISTA faculty member and CEO of the conscious dating app, Lua, Makatu Roni, guides us through some answers to these questions. For him, they hold the key to what is missing in the world right now. He tells his story of manifesting his soul-calling in Lua and, before that, the ecstatic dance comm...

In this episode, Simon talks with ISTA faculty Stephanie Phillips, who happens to be his biological mother! They dive into issues of inter-generational healing and what it can really look like to address family relationships head-on. Simon explores with Stephanie her signature teaching: “being in the body brings us home.” By coming back to the body, Stephanie says, we give ourselves the chance to...

"When you know, you know," an old sage once said. And the power of sexual shamanism is one of those things. You can't forget it once you've experienced it. In this episode, ISTA Level 1 and 2 facilitator, Michal Mayan Don, marvels at the rapidly emerging culture of people who now carry this knowledge. As she explains, what we are doing when we train in sexual shamanism is prepa...

The midwest region of the USA is not famous for its radical attitudes towards sexuality. You might usually associate that area of the world with conservative values, fields of wheat, unpredictable weather (hello cyclone season!), sports, and very nice folks. In today’s episode we hear from ISTA facilitator Briana Cribeyer who grew up in the Midwest reveals a different story, one of a land that has...

A life full of creativity, sensuality, beauty, and connection… How to cultivate it? In this episode, we talk with ISTA Lead Faculty member Raffaello Manacorda about what it means to bring the culture of conscious sexuality into your life, and how to share it with those around you. And it's not just about sex. We can do this through delicious meals, slow walks through the forest, cuddles on th...

​​Coming from his experience as a soldier in the Israeli military, and from studying Kung Fu in a Chinese temple, ISTA Facilitator, Or Koren, speaks about how you can integrate ALL parts of yourself into your life on this planet. The body is central. "If we choose to walk this path of embodiment and integration in the attempt to heal our trauma," he says, "we have to do so slowly, s...

The word "Tantra" gets used a lot these days, sometimes in ways that challenge what the word really refers to. ISTA Facilitator, Bynoi D'Souza, has tracked Tantra from the root, growing up in India, reading and speaking Sanskrit, travelling the world, and teaching what could be called the path's ever-erupting LIFE . In this episode, Bynoi explores some heights and depths of Tan...

We can all, perhaps, relate to feeling older. We might feel it more acutely at one time, or another. But, often, as we notch up the years — or decades — there can be a feeling that we’re supposed to slip into the background. To stop participating in life. To turn our volume down and be less visible. As ISTA Facilitator, Penny Goldmuntz, explains, this absolutely does not have to be the case. &quot...

When you hear the word "shamanic," what do you think of? Maybe you think of plant medicines, psychedelic drugs, or transcendental experiences. Maybe you think of energy, and the world of the immaterial and spiritual. In this episode, ISTA Facilitator, Juan Es Alzate Mejia, talks about what shamanism means to him and how he discovered that he had access to subtle layers of reality that sh...

Do you struggle with navigating multiple relationships while staying committed, to yourself and to your partner? Do you want to explore surrendering to the essence of love while staying authentically true to yourself?  In this episode of The Spiritual Sexual Shamanic Podcast, Ria Yoshida (who usually asks the questions!) answers on leaning into partnership as a growth opportunity and spiritual pra...

In this fascinating episode, Javi Martinez shares about her journey as a shapeshifter, not falling into any of the conventions. Javi is a bridge between the worlds, and embodies a direct transmission of what it means to transcend massive barriers, courageously exploring gender with full guidance from Spirit. Javi is a LGBTQI Educator and Trainer, a Mental Health Counsellor, a Sex and Sensuality Ed...

Most of us have been brought up in a culture that is traumatized around sex... Ellie Wilde is deeply interested in redefining sexuality so that being in the experience and enjoying is more important than performing. In this episode, Ellie shares about her exploration of how relaxed states of arousal can foster profound restorative Eros, and bring about more connection with oneself and with the par...

Do you sometimes feel yourself accelerating in ways that aren't the most supportive to your authentic being? Do you long for respecting the pace of your heart, of your body, of all your emotions and hidden places where your true power and beauty reside? Avishag aims deep, and shares here with us her research on slowing down in order to feel more.  Listen in to hear Avishag on: - daring the in...

Are you interested in increasing your focus, energy and motivation by tapping into the immense possibilities of your sexual energy? Do you want to live in a way that you can embody your full potential and manifest your deepest desires? Buddhi Dana is welcoming you to come closer and explore... Buddhi is a man of the heart who is walking the Tantric path for the last 20 years. A spiritual leader, s...