When I hear the word “herbalism”, images of candlelit apothecaries, exquisite antique bottles of tincture, and the age old mortar and pestle come to mind. Even today, this isn’t too far from the mark – a resurgence of the age-old practice is in full swing and the craft has not changed ...
In this line of work, I am in constant contact with folks who are either trying to recover from an illness or who have broken through and regained their health. I’ve noticed that many of these people mention spiritual “openings” that came to them in their darkest moments – an unexpected gift from ...
When I open the medicine cabinet in our bathroom, what I see is mesmerizing. About 7.5 of the 8 shelves in there are jam packed with mysterious creams, tonics, and scrubs that my wife Michelle swears by as part of her beauty regimen. On the remaining half shelf that has been assigned to me (nomadic ...
We are back in the States after a long and fruitful medicine expedition across Central America and I’m excited to share some of the footage we’ve brought home with us. Below is a segment from our interview with acclaimed ethnobotanist, David Winston, that focuses on how to match the right herbs ...
I’m writing you from the little town of Quesada, Costa Rica. We’re just finishing the filming of our new series, “Secrets of the Ancient Healers”, which I’ll be sharing with you in a few months. More on that later – on to today’s piece! It seems ironic to be ...
I’m writing you from the remote village of San Marcos La Laguna, Guatemala. “Why?”, you ask? As you know, we spend a lot of time exploring the traditional herbs of North and South America, but how about the fertile land bridge that connects these two gigantic continents? Don’t let ...
Change is coming and there’s nothing we can do about it. It may be a year from now, maybe a day – but most likely, it’s already begun. Though we crave predictability and would like to wake up each morning and know every curveball that life might throw us, the game doesn’t work that way. Nor should...
Some of the most powerful lessons can find us when we least expect them. A few days ago, I was standing amidst hundreds of people in a long line that stretched around a Buddhist temple outside of San Francisco. It was a Sunday, and we were all there to hear the teachings of a renowned spiritual master, but ...
Over the past few weeks, the team and I have been immersed in hours of research on ancient Tibetan culture as part of an upcoming project that we will be releasing in mid 2014. Most of us associate this sacred region of the world with Tibetan Buddhism, but believe it or not, Tibet is rich with shamanic ...
Last week I had the opportunity to spend a few days with Roman Hanis, the lead shaman in our film The Sacred Science. He was in the country for a small window of time and came all the way out to our studio to meet with us – a true gift. On the last day of his visit, Roman and I sat down for a filmed ...
A few months ago, we were invited to attend a tribal gathering in Northern Wisconsin. We must be doing something right, because the elders also agreed that we could bring our cameras with us! Many people associate this Great Lakes state with cheese, but for us this region holds far more meaning than that. ...
I’ve been traveling a TON lately and am grateful to finally be back home in Berkeley, CA! Whenever I am preparing to go on the road, I experience a familiar feeling of dread, knowing that my “sacred lifestyle” is about to be challenged in all manner of ways. It’s not always easy to...