Talks: audio

A selection of fascinating talks which you can download or listen to online

Rumi Festival: To hear recordings from the 2013 Rumi festival, including music from Kudsi Erguner, click here.

Convocation Event at Chisholme House, September 2015: 

Past, Present and Future

Some 135 students and friends of Chisholme came together to clarify understanding, refresh the intention and commit to the next forty years and beyond. Here the introductory talk. See more...
For a text version of the talk, see here...

 Peter Young

Understanding the past: a talk by Peter Young, principal, with an introduction by Christopher Ryan. For text versions of these ta
Download this recording, or play it below.

Katharine Tiernan – St.Cuthbert: Life and Legacy

Katharine’s talk is about the life of St. Cuthbert, with readings from the Venerable Bede, and extracts from her new book: Place of Repose: a tale of Saint Cuthbert’s last journey. The talk also considers the more recent history of 'The Saint of the North' and why he matters to us today.
Download this recording, or play it below.

‘A Heart Capable of Every Form’– atheism, agnosticism and belief - Jane Carroll

Jane Carroll has been involved with the Beshara Trust and the Chisholme Institute since the 1970s. A founding member and current Secretary of the Muhyiddin Ibn ‘Arabi Society in the USA, she has lectured on Ibn ‘Arabi, geometry and sacred structures. Jane studied at the Architectural Association under Keith Critchlow, and lives in Ojai, California, where she practises architecture and design.

Download this recording, or play it below.

Psychotherapy and the Unity of Being - Janet Bowers

Janet Bowers has been practising as a Core Process Psychotherapist for the last eleven years, a model that is based on awareness and Buddhist principles. She has been a student at the Chisholme Institute in Scotland where she was introduced to the works of Ibn’ Arabi which she has studied for many years. She is a member of the Beshara Trust, an educational charity.

Download this recording, or play it below.

"The Four Pills" - Bulent Rauf

Bulent was instrumental in establishing the Beshara School, and served as its consultant from 1975 until his death in 1987. For more, see here.

Download this recording, or play it below.

The Singleness of Being within the context of the work of St. Gregory of Nyssa, by Edward Hallinan

Edward has been studying the writings of the Cappadocian fathers, as well as classical and Sumerian mythology, for the past 20 years. He embarked on these studies following the courses he took at the Beshara School, which have been guiding his search ever since. He gave this talk as part of the 6-month-course lectures at Chisholme, in March 2011.Download, or play below.

Ayurvedic Philosophy, by Elizabeth Roberts

Click here to view the accompanying slideshow in PDF format. Elizabeth studied English at Oxford and Philosophical Inquiry at Glasgow University. For most of her life she has worked in education, from teaching English as a Foreign Language in Indonesia with V.S.O. to secondary school teaching, community education, and lecturing at Glasgow and Edinburgh Universities. She is now a yoga teacher and practitioner of ayurveda. Download, or play below.

The Vision of Rumi: The perspective of the Eye of the Heart in the Masnavi, by Alan Williams

Alan Williams is Professor of Iranian Studies and Comparative Religion at Manchester University and is working on a translation of Rumi's Masnavi, the first volume of which has been published by Penguin. Download or play below.

Human Being / Being Human: Awareness, ascension and the attainment of true happiness, by Stephen Hirtenstein

Stephen is editor of the Journal of the Muhyiddin Ibn 'Arabi Society and co-founder of Anqa Publishing. He has been a student at the Chisholme Institute for forty years. This talk (which was presented in a slightly different form as the 2012 Beshara Lecture in London and Edinburgh) was given on 2 March 2013. Download or play below.

A talk on his forthcoming book, "Why genes are not selfish and people are nice", by Colin Tudge

Colin Tudge was born in London in 1943; educated at Dulwich College, 1954-61; and read zoology at Peterhouse, Cambridge, 1962-65. Ever since then he has earned a living by spasmodic broadcasting and a lot of writing – mainly books these days, but with occasional articles. He has a special interest in natural history in general, evolution and genetics, food and agriculture, and spends a great deal of time on philosophy (especially moral philosophy, the philosophy of science, and the relationship between science and religion). This talk was given on February 27th 2013. Download or play below.

A Modern Mindfulness Movement by Alison Yiangou

Alison Yiangou has been a student at the Chisholme Institute for most of her adult life, and has facilitated courses worldwide. She is now studying for a Masters Degree and a  Teaching Diploma in Mindfulness at the Centre for Mindfulness Research and Practice at Bangor University, and also undergoing some teacher training at the Oxford Mindfulness Centre. She gave this talk at Chisholme House on February 15th 2013. Download or play below. For a text version of the talk click here...

 

Andrew Harvey's talk on Rumi

Andrew Harvey, author of numerous books including Light upon Light: inspirations from Rumi visited Chisholme House in October 2012. He gave a stirring talk to a pavilion full of students and visitors about the contemporary legacy of Rumi, and the importance of finding and following passion. Andrew Harvey's visit was sponsored by SKGR, and we look  forward to welcoming him again at Chisholme in August 2013 for the Rumi Festival. Download or play below.

Meister Eckhart by Adam Dupré

"Meister Eckhart's writings display the most beautiful and limpid logic and clarity. He is thoroughly familiar with the concepts and references of his contemporaries... But this is not what he was, it was an adjective of him if you like, or maybe better, a means of expression. His fundamental starting point (and ending point), is complete servanthood – and it is important to understand this because otherwise you will think you are looking at a body of ideas, a point of view, one set of ideas among others." A talk given at the Chisholme Institute, February 2011. Play below, download, or read the text.

The Art of the Insoluble by Colin Tudge

Given at the Beshara School at Chisholme in March 2010, as part of the six-month course lecture programme.

Colin Tudge was born in London in 1943; educated at Dulwich College, 1954-61; and read zoology at Peterhouse, Cambridge, 1962-65. Ever since then he has earned a living by spasmodic broadcasting and a lot of writing – mainly books these days, but with occasional articles. He has a special interest in natural history in general, evolution and genetics, food and agriculture, and spends a great deal of time on philosophy (especially moral philosophy, the philosophy of science, and the relationship between science and religion). Play below or download.

 

Educating the Heart: establishing a spiritual perspective in the modern world by Jane Clark

The first Beshara Lecture, given in London on October 30th, 2010. Jane has been studying Ibn 'Arabi's thought for nearly thirty years as a student of the Beshara School, and in 2000 took a degree at Oxford in order to read him in the original Arabic. She is particularly interested in the way that his ideas have spread throughout the world, and as Society Librarian has done research work on the early manuscripts. She has written and lectured on Ibn 'Arabi's thought and is most concerned with the universal appeal of his writings, especially as revealed in Fusus al-hikam. Read the transcription here,  download, or play below.

 

Brion Sweeney

Brion Sweeney works with individuals and groups in both private and public practice and is currently employed as a consultant psychiatrist to Eastern Health Board Addiction Services in Dublin, Ireland. He is a co-founder along with Akong Rinpoche of Tara Rokpa Psychotherapy. Play below or download.

 

Kirsten Morrison Sings

Kirsten Morrison sings "Author of light" from her opera Songs of Alchemy performed at the 2010 symposium Facing the Unknown. More of the soundtrack available from myspace.com/kirstenmorrison. Play below or download.

The Meaning of 'Hu': A talk by J.G. Bennett

This was given at Beshara, Swyre Farm on 21 December 1972. Here, as the listener, you are transported into the living presence of an extraordinary man, who invites you to bear witness with him to a mystery, which is literally 'beyond words'. You can read the transcription of this talk here. Play below or download.

(This recording is © JG Bennett Foundation. Other talks by J.G. Bennett can be found at http://www.johngbennett.org/

'Open Heart Surgery' – The Operation of Love in Rumi's Masnavi by Alan Williams

A talk at the Chisholme Institute in 2007. Alan Williams is Professor of Iranian Studies and Comparative Religion at Manchester University and is working on a translation of Rumi's Masnavi, the first volume of which has been published by Penguin. Play below or download.

 

Ethical Economy – The Generosity of Giving by Giles Chitty

Giles Chitty co-founded The Financial Initiative Ltd, the first UK ethical financial institution, in 1984 and Barchester Green Investment, the first green IFA, in 1989. During his career he has advised the Indonesian Minister of Finance on public enterprise planning and management, and has been a Trustee of the Findhorn Foundation. Listen below or download.

Ibn 'Arabi and the Ecological Crisis: a Merciful Nemesis? by Peter Coates

Peter graduated from Lancaster and researched at Keble College, Oxford. He was senior Lecturer in the Department of Psychology at the University of Lincoln. He has studied, lectured and written extensively about mysticism, with particular reference to Muhyiddin Ibn 'Arabi, the eminent Arab mystic of the 12th century. Peter is the author of Ibn 'Arabi and Modern Thought. Listen below or download.

Sadr al-dīn Qunawī – His importance to us, and his relationship to Rūmī by Jane Clark

Jane Clark is a teacher who lives in Oxford. She has been studying Ibn 'Arabi's thought for nearly thirty years as a student of the Beshara School, and in 2000 took a degree at Oxford in order to read him in the original Arabic. She is particularly interested in the way that his ideas have spread throughout the world, and as Society Librarian has done research work on the early manuscripts. She has written and lectured on Ibn 'Arabi's thought and is most concerned with the universal appeal of his writings, especially as revealed in Fusus al-hikam. Listen below or download.

Self Knowledge and Global Responsibility by Peter Yiangou

The welcome address to the the first Self Knowlege Global Responsibility (SKGR) Symposium in 2009. In recent years Peter has been involved in running  courses on selfknowledge and self-enquiry in Australia and Indonesia. Listen to his welcome below or download. You can read a transcription of the Welcome here. Find out more about SKGR here.