Episode Summary

In today’s episode I interviewed John Kesler. John brings together decades of contemplative wisdom and leadership experience across multiple sectors in this deeply personal conversation. From his early discovery as a young atheist in Hamburg, Germany—where he found a foundational “physical resonance” through silence and stillness—to his journey through Columbia Law School grappling with language’s ephemeral nature, to re-engaging with his Mormon roots and training with Zen master Genpo Roshi, John’s path has been one of integrating seemingly contradictory ways of knowing. Over the past 20 years, he has developed Integral Polarity Practice, a framework for holding together opposites like transcendent and imminent, personal and collective, theoretical and practical. In this episode, Eric reflects on his own teacher-student relationship with John and explores the tension between our love of “pure imagination”—the conceptual frameworks and digital worlds that captivate modern minds—and the need to stay tethered to embodied reality, relationships, and the more-than-human world. The conversation ultimately invites listeners to walk in “sacred beauty” by finding stillness in non-dual wholeness.

(And you’ll see, I’m trying out making these as videos as well so you can choose either video or audio engagement with the work! Let me know what you think!)

John Kesler’s Work:

* Living into Sacred Beauty: The Origins and Emergence of Integral Polarity Practice

* Integral Polarity Practice: In Service of Leadership for Flourishing

* IPP Institute

* YOUnify Initiative

* Another Way Forward Leadership Movement

* Here is a pdf describing the course; if you are interested in taking the course discussed during the episode related to this, please email John at john@theippinstitute.com.

Global Flourishing Resources

* https://globalflourishingstudy.com

* Jim Ritchie-Dunham, Agreements: Your Choice

* “Leadership for Flourishing” (Oxford University Press)

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