References & Resources
The following list combines modern scientific research with traditional contemplative practices. From clinical studies on breathwork to historical texts, these materials provide the background and evidence supporting the grounding methods used at Upaya.
Zig Zag Zen: Buddhism and Psychedelics
by Allan Badiner (Editor), Alex Grey (Editor), Stephen Batchelor (Foreword)
Buddhism and psychedelic exploration share a common concern: the liberation of the mind. This new edition of Zig Zag Zen: Buddhism and Psychedelics has evolved from the landmark anthology that launched the first inquiry into the ethical, doctrinal, and transcendental considerations of the intersection of Buddhism and psychedelics.
The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body
in the Healing of Trauma
by Bessel van der Kolk M.D.
Trauma is a fact of life. Veterans and their families deal with the painful aftermath of combat; one in five Americans has been molested; one in four grew up with alcoholics; one in three couples have engaged in physical violence. Dr. Bessel van der Kolk, one of the world’s foremost experts on trauma, has spent over three decades working with survivors.
Satipatthana Meditation: A Practice Guide
by Analayo
From the Buddhist meditator and scholar, Bhikkhu Anālayo, this is a thorough-going guide to the early Buddhist teachings on Satipatthana, the foundations of mindfulness, following on from his two best-selling books, Satipatthana: The Direct Path to Realization and Perspectives on Satipatthana. With mindfulness being so widely taught, there is a need for a clear-sighted and experience-based guide. Analayo provides it.
Consciousness Medicine: Indigenous
Wisdom, Entheogens, and Expanded States
of Consciousness for Healing and Growth
by Françoise Bourzat (Author), Kristina Hunter (Author), Ralph Metzner Ph.D. (Foreword)
Françoise Bourzat—a counselor and experienced guide with sanctioned training in the Mazatec and other indigenous traditions—and healer Kristina Hunter introduce a holistic model focusing on the threefold process of preparation, journey, and integration. Drawing from more than thirty years of experience, Bourzat’s skillful and heartfelt approach presents the therapeutic application of expanded states, without divorcing them from their traditional contexts.
Psychedelic Therapy: A Revolutionary
Approach to Restoring Your Mental Health
and Reclaiming Your Life
by Will Van Derveer (Author), Keith Kurlander (Author), Gabor Maté (Foreword)
For those grappling with anxiety, depression, PTSD, or other mental health challenges—and those who feel let down by a fragmented and failing mental health system—Psychedelic Therapy offers a hopeful, evidence-based exploration of a novel approach to healing. As leaders in the field of psychedelic therapy and trauma treatment, Will Van Derveer, MD, and Keith Kurlander, LPC, draw on their clinical expertise, client stories, and the latest research to help you
The Myth of Normal: Trauma, Illness, and Healing in a Toxic Culture
by Gabor Maté MD (Author), Daniel Maté
Over four decades of clinical experience, Maté has come to recognize the prevailing understanding of “normal” as false, neglecting the roles that trauma and stress, and the pressures of modern-day living, exert on our bodies and our minds at the expense of good health. For all our expertise and technological sophistication, Western medicine often fails to treat the whole person, ignoring how today’s culture stresses the body, burdens the immune system, and undermines emotional balance.
Tao Te Ching
by Lao-Tzu (Author), Stephen Mitchell (Translator)
'Do you want to improve the world?
I don't think it can be done.
The world is sacred.
It can't be improved.
If you tamper with it, you'll ruin it.
If you treat it like an object, you'll lose it.
' Stephen Mitchell's translation of Lao Tzu's Tao Te Ching (The Book of the Way) has sold over half a million copies worldwide.
In this stunningly beautiful edition of the fundamental modern Taoist philosophy text, Mitchell's words are set against ancient Chinese paintings selected by Asian art expert, Dr Stephen Little.
The Way of the Psychonaut Vol. 1 & 2: Encyclopedia for Inner Journeys
by Stanislav Grof M.D. (Author), Richard Tarnas PhD (Foreword)
This comprehensive work is a tour de force through the worlds of psychology and psychotherapy, Holotropic Breathwork, maps of the psyche, birth, sex, and death, psychospiritual rebirth, the roots of trauma, spiritual emergency and transpersonal experiences, karma and reincarnation, higher creativity, great art, and archetypes.
As one of the fathers of psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy, its most experienced practitioner, and deeply deserving of a Nobel Prize in medicine, in these two volumes Grof has successfully unveiled a new and sweeping paradigm in self-exploration and healing.
Sri Chakra Yantra : Manifest anything with the symbol of everything
by Vinita Rashinkar (Author)
Discover how a 12,000-year-old mystical symbol holds the key to awakening your deepest inner potential and enhancing your powers of manifestation.
The Sri Chakra Yantra is an ancient symbol depicting the process of creation in a powerful matrix which represents both the macrocosm (the Universe) and microcosm (the human body), thus acting as a powerful, cosmic antenna that allows you direct access to communicate with the Universe.
This book equips you with information and skills necessary to harness the tremendous cosmic energies available in the Universe and channelize it to make life’s dreams come true by presenting the Sri Chakra Yantra as a tool for self-development.
Out of Your Mind: Essential Listening from the Alan Watts Audio Archives
by Alan Watts (Author, Narrator), Macmillan Audio (Publisher)
In order to come to your senses, Alan Watts often said, you sometimes need to go out of your mind. Perhaps more than any other teacher in the West, this celebrated author, former Anglican priest, and self-described spiritual entertainer was responsible for igniting the passion of countless wisdom seekers to the spiritual and philosophical delights of Asia and India.
Now, with Out of Your Mind: Essential Listening from the Alan Watts Audio Archives, you are invited to immerse yourself in 12 of this legendary thinker's pinnacle teaching sessions about how to break through the limits of the rational mind, and begin expanding your awareness and appreciation for the Great Game unfolding all around us.
Breathwork Manual: Mindfulness-Based Breathing Exercises to Improve Emotional Balance, Enhance Performance, and Strengthen Stress-Reduction Skills to Increase Focus and Support Mental Health
by Andrew Smart (Author), Eric Nyquist
(Illustrated by)
Harness the power of your breath to nourish your mind, body, and spirit.For anyone in search of peace, clarity, and calm, Breathwork is an all-levels handbook of breathwork techniques--the practice of combining breathing exercises with meditation.
Decrease anxiety, foster energy, and build awareness using breathwork traditions.
Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art
by James Nestor (Author, Narrator)
There is nothing more essential to our health and well-being than breathing: take air in, let it out, repeat twenty-five thousand times a day. Yet, as a species, humans have lost the ability to breathe correctly, with grave consequences.
Journalist James Nestor travels the world to figure out what went wrong and how to fix it. The answers aren’t found in pulmonology labs, as we might expect, but in the muddy digs of ancient burial sites, secret Soviet facilities, New Jersey choir schools, and the smoggy streets of São Paulo. Nestor tracks down men and women exploring the hidden science behind ancient breathing practices like Pranayama, Sudarshan Kriya, and Tummo and teams up with pulmonary tinkerers to scientifically test long-held beliefs about how we breathe.
Breath & Integration
If you are looking for support in sustaining your inner connection when life becomes challenging, I recommend exploring Adam Beker's work in Breath Integration [@Breath-Integration]. Adam helps people who have already done a great deal of personal development learn how to stay connected to themselves when life becomes challenging. Through Breath Integration, he helps people cultivate the awareness and capacity that helps people naturally return to themselves instead of reacting from stress and unconscious patterns.
I highly recommend you get in touch with him. Adam can be reached by appointment at: calendly.com/contact-silent-alchemy/breath-integration-consultation
Integration, Harm Reduction, and Physical Grounding
Peer-reviewed studies and clinical research on how body-based practices support safety and long-term integration.