Adyashanti, author of The Way of Liberation: A Practical Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment, Resurrecting Jesus, True Meditation, and The End of Your World, is an American-born spiritual teacher devoted to serving the awakening of all beings. His teachings are an open invitation to stop, inquire, and recognize what is true and liberating at the core of all existence. Asked to teach in 1996 by his Zen teacher of 14 years, Adyashanti offers teachings that are free of any tradition or ideology. “The Truth I point to is not confined within any religious point of view, belief system, or doctrine, but is open to all and found within all.” He teaches throughout North America and Europe, offering satsangs, weekend intensives, silent retreats, and a live internet radio broadcast. Other Batgap interviews with Adyashanti: First interview with Adyashanti Adyashanti and Susanne Marie on the Falling Away of Self Adyashanti and Francis Bennett on "The Embrace of Jesus and Buddha" Website: adyashanti.org Francis Bennett was an ordinary, sociable young man who answered the call to a life of spiritual adventure as a contemplative in the monastery of the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance, commonly known as Trappists. Thomas Merton, the pioneering Christian mystic of the 20th Century, was Francis’ inspiration and it was Merton’s influence that led Francis to explore the deepest reality of being, within the frameworks of Christianity, Buddhism, Advaita Vedanta and non-duality. Francis has worked with the sick and dying in parishes, hospitals, and hospices since he moved away from the monastic life. In 2010, while in the middle of mass, there came what Francis describes as, “a radical perceptual shift in consciousness”, which made it clear that the pure awareness at the heart of all is no different from the presence of God, which he had been seeking outside himself for so long. Other Batgap interviews with Francis Bennett: First BatGap interview with Francis. Francis Bennett and John Mark Stroud Francis Bennett, in Panel Discussion on Refined Perception Francis Bennett, with Jac O’Keeffe and Igor Kufayev at the SAND conference Francis Bennett in Panel at Sofia U. Part 1 | Part 2 Francis Bennett and Adyashanti on "The Embrace of Jesus and Buddha" Francis Bennett in panel discussion:: “Emptiness is also Form” Discussion recorded 10/23/2014 Transcript of this discussion. YouTube Video Chapters: 00:00:00 - Adyashanti and Francis Bennett: Resurrecting Jesus 00:04:45 - The Magic of Christianity 00:07:58 - Rediscovering the Magic of Mystical Texts 00:11:59 - Jesus as a Model of Enlightened Consciousness 00:16:00 - The humanity of the Buddhist tradition 00:20:09 - The Pendulum of the Relative and the Transcendent 00:24:52 - The unique manifestation of mystical truth 00:30:03 - The Extraordinary Nature of Human Potential 00:34:53 - The Infinite Levels of Reality 00:39:33 - The Teaching of Jesus and Miracles 00:43:29 - The Dangers of Power and the Necessity for Wise Utilization 00:46:46 - Being a Servant of Truth 00:50:03 - True Leadership and the Counterintuitive Nature 00:53:18 - Being a Servant of the Universe's Evolution 00:57:03 - Sacrifice and Love in Divine Incarnation 01:00:45 - Different Strokes for Different Folks in Spirituality 01:04:04 - Reaching Out for Help 01:07:33 - Teaching on Spiritual Childhood and the "Little Flower" 01:10:58 - The Authentic Shifts in Radical Teachings 01:14:18 - The Importance of Individual Discernment 01:17:30 - The Importance of Humility and Guidance in Personal Growth 01:20:58 - The Physical and Spiritual Connection 01:24:39 - The Power of Stories 01:28:21 - The Mystery of Truth 01:31:37 - The Power of Silence 01:35:05 - Nonlinear Communication and Awakening Journeys 01:38:38 - Healing through Authority