About this episode
Paul has been involved with the recovery community since 1988 and has been leading workshops and holding talks for 18 years. He has been assisting those with addiction problems for many years. The 12-step program has some very potent ‘pointers’, which have assisted a few to go beyond the 12 steps. Paul is unwavering in his teaching. His very direct, uncompromising pointing doesn't provide a refuge for entrenched conditioning and the sense of separateness, no matter how convincing that experience may be. "Whatever arises in my mind, I don't let it vouch for me." "Any form of looking that focuses on an object misses the opportunity to directly be the seeing, and not be identified with the object." Paul's site: ZenBitchSlap. Summary and Transcript of this interview. Interview recorded 3/26/2011 YouTube Video Chapters: 00:00:00 - Introduction to Paul Hedderman 00:03:18 - The Essence of Awakening 00:05:13 - The cat knocking over the light and the value of interpretation 00:07:31 - The false interpretation of a self 00:10:00 - The Bogusness of Self 00:12:23 - The concept of selfing explained 00:14:30 - Language and the Reflective Mind 00:17:12 - Freedom from the Bondage of Being a Self 00:19:43 - A Conversation on Repetition and Learning 00:22:15 - Childhood Innocence and Ant Wars 00:24:33 - Finding Relief in Alcohol and Drugs 00:26:50 - The Book of Recovery: A Spiritual Program 00:28:49 - The Identification as Self 00:31:34 - Living in "having found" 00:34:13 - The Flow of Juice 00:36:22 - Spiritual Practices and Near-Death Experience 00:38:18 - Exploring Different Spiritual Practices 00:40:48 - Letting Go of the Failed System 00:43:03 - The Mental Vice of Selfing 00:45:16 - The False Center 00:47:46 - Degrees of Bondage 00:50:05 - The Illusion of "Self" and Freedom from Selfing 00:52:07 - The Pause in Selfing 00:54:00 - Applying the Approach to Recovery 00:56:22 - The Origin of "Zen Bitch-Slap" 00:58:58 - The Illusion of Personal Death 01:01:16 - The Seeing of What I'm Not 01:03:23 - The Paradox of What's Not Going On (with Rick Archer) 01:06:01 - A Course In Miracles and the Structure of the Mind 01:08:11 - Traveling Light through Maya 01:10:15 - A Fun Place to Live Save