In much of contemporary trauma work, practitioners talk about the window of tolerance — a concept developed by Dr. Dan Siegel, psychiatrist and founder of the Mindsight Institute. It describes the range of arousal within which a person can function smoothly: think clearly, feel emotion, and stay connected to themselves and others. When the nervous …
How I was the source of my own suffering when I had an intense Kundalini Awakening (is this you too?)
Something that’s common amongst people experiencing an intense Kundalini Awakening is a desire for things to be different, a desire to fix or change things. It’s such a paradox but the doorway for a Kundalini Awakening, the portal, is our willingness to meet and embrace whatever’s unfolding exactly as it is. The paradox is that …
Cannabis as a Sacred Plant Medicine: Journeying, Accessing Trance States & Psychosis
by Kara-Leah Grant, (I wrote this in 2019, and only just published it, 2025) This article has been a long time coming. Given that Canada has just legalised cannabis, and New Zealand is finally having a referendum on legalising it in 2020, it feels like now is the time. The danger in writing about the …
New Zealand’s Best Transformational Festivals
Transformational Festivals – What are they? My definition is that the purpose of the festival is not just to entertain, or party, but also to have a transformative effect on participants. If there are workshops like yoga, meditation, personal development, growth-orientated, green-focused, breathwork or education-focused, then it’s likely a transformational festival. If the organisers share …
What is Traditional Tantra and Where Do I Learn It?
There is a resurgence of interest arising in traditional Tantra in large propelled by the work of scholar-practitioners such as Christopher Wallis and Christopher Tompkins, and informed by the publication of books like Tantra Illuminated and The Recognition Sutras. This resurgence was possibly seeded by the stratospheric rise — and burnout — of Anusara Yoga. It was founded …
Everything You Need to Know About Kundalini Awakening (But Didn’t Know to Ask)
Kundalini Awakening, the activation and rising of Kundalini energy in the body, can be a frightening and even dangerous experience. This is especially the case if you experienced a spontaneous Kundalini Awakening before doing the work to prepare yourself for it. That’s when a Kundalini Awakening can lead to horror stories of out-of-control “crazy” behaviour …