2012 KRN Conference Presenter Bios:
Teri Degler, MA
An award-winning writer, Teri Degler is the author/co-author of ten books – including The Fiery Muse: Creativity and the Spiritual Quest (Random House of Canada). Her recent book, The Divine Feminine Fire: Creativity and Your Yearning to Express Your Self (Dreamriver Press) has frequently been listed as a # 1 Bestseller in the both the feminist spirituality and the goddess categories on amazon.ca.
For three decades, Teri has done research on yoga philosophy, Tantra, Kundalini, and the lives of extraordinarily creative women mystics. Much of her work has also focused on the divine feminine known as Shakti in Hinduism and the surprising parallels that can be found with Sophia and Shekinah in Judaism and Christianity. Her freelance writing has been featured in Family Circle, More Magazine, SageWoman, Today’s Parent, The Toronto Star, The United Church Observer and many other publications. She has taught numerous workshops on creativity and creative writing in the U.S. and Canada.
Lawrence Edwards, PhD, BCN, LMHC
Lawrence Edwards, Ph.D., LMHC, BCIAC EEG Fellow is the President of the Kundalini Research Network. He is on the faculty of New York Medical College and maintains a private practice in Cincinnati, OH and Westchester Cnty, NY providing biofeedback, psychotherapy, peak performance and meditation training (www.optimalmind.net). He did his doctoral research on Kundalini in the early 1980's at Temple University where he was honored as a University Scholar. He was the director of a private Jungian psychiatric treatment center in Connecticut. He prepared to become a monk under the guidance of Swami Muktananda and spent years teaching and studying Kundalini yoga in India as well as in the US. He has run ashrams, meditation centers, meditation programs and retreats internationally. He has served 6 terms as President of the Kundalini Research Network. His critically acclaimed book, The Soul's Journey: Guidance From The Divine Within, (www.thesoulsjourney.com) brings together his professional background and his extraordinary personal experiences of mystical states engendered by Kundalini. It enables readers to grasp their potential for the direct experience of the Divine in their own lives. His new audio program, Kundalini Awakening: The Path To Radical Freedom, (Sounds True 2012) is a 6 CD set of lectures and guided meditations for deepening people’s practices and understanding of Kundalini. He is author of Kali’s Bazaar,( TSJ Publications 2012) a collection of poetry inspired by Kundalini. Dr. Edwards is also one of the contributors in the anthology Kundalini Rising (Sounds True 2009). This is a compilation of the writings of 24 leading authors in the field of Kundalini, several of whom are also part of the Kundalini Research Network. He is the founder and director of The Anam Cara Foundation, a non-profit 501 (C) 3 educational organization dedicated to teaching meditative practices. Dr. Edwards helps people from around the world dealing with Kundalini processes and spiritual emergence. He created a support website: www.Kundalinisupport.org in addition to all the information and resources made available on Kundalini through his website www.thesoulsjourney.com.
Bruce Greyson, MD
Dr. Greyson is Carlson Prof. of Psychiatry & Neurobehavioral Sciences and Director of the Division of Perceptual Studies at the University of Virginia Health System. He is a founding board member of the International Association for Near-Death Studies (IANDS) and served as their first Director of Research and editor of The Journal for Near-Death Studies. During that time he developed the Physio-Kundalini Syndrome Index (PKSI) and published the results in scholarly journals. His results showed that those who had a deep spiritual experience during a near-death episode (a core experience) reported twice as many signs and symptoms of Kundalini arousal as did those who came close to death without having an experience. He is a co-author and sits of the research panel for the new research into CMPEs – Conjunctions of Meaningful Parallel Events.
Sat Bir Singh Khalsa, PhD
Sat Bir Singh Khalsa, PhD is an Assistant Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School and Associate Neuroscientist, Division of Sleep Medicine, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital. Dr. Khalsa has been involved in the practice of a yoga lifestyle for over 35 years and is a Kundalini Yoga instructor. He has conducted neuroscience research for over 25 years and is currently an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School, and is also the Director of Research for the Kundalini Research Institute and the Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health. His current research is on the effectiveness of yoga and meditation practices and includes studies on yoga for insomnia, music performance anxiety and public schools among others. He has traveled internationally meeting and collaborating with yoga research scientists and assists in coordinating the research component of the annual Symposium on Yoga Therapy and Research of the International Association of Yoga Therapists. He is the author of a comprehensive review and analysis of yoga therapy research and he also teaches an elective course at Harvard Medical School in Mind Body Medicine. Dr. Khalsa is also a contributor to the anthology, Kundalini Rising, published by Sounds True.
Judith Miller, PhD
Judith Miller is a Professor of Developmental Psychology at Columbia University; she has been assisting people who travel a spiritual path for 25 years through breathwork and integrative psychotherapy. In addition to facilitating breathwork groups nationally, she leads groups in Germany, other European countries, and Korea as well. She is active in the European Transpersonal Association (Eurotas), is currently co-leading an international Transpersonal Training program in Europe and has been co-leading retreats for second and third generation descendants of Nazis and American Jews in Germany for the last twelve years. She also has conducted long-term clinical research on the spiritual content of what is termed "hallucinations" and "delusions" of individuals with a psychotic diagnosis. She is the author of "Direct Connection: Transformation of Consciousness" and is just completing her second book -- "Spiritual Homecoming: Traveling the Western Path."
Rabbi Jerry Steinberg
Jerry Steinberg is a rabbi and practicing mystic. Upon ordination from the Hebrew Union College - Jewish Institute of Religion in Cincinnati, he lived for two years at Yasodhara Ashram in the Kootenay mountains of British Columbia under the mentorship of Swami Sivananda Radha. He lectured for five years as the University of North Dakota on Comparative Mysticism and Meditation and was Consultant to the Federal Government of Canada on Yoga, Meditation and Altered States of Consciousness. His memoirs will be published this year by ECW Press in Toronto. Jerry lives near Toronto and is rabbi of Temple B'nai Shalom V'Tikvah in Ajax, Ontario.
Yolaine Stout
Yolaine M. Stout is an honors graduate of the University of California, Berkeley and a 25 year veteran teacher. She has served as President and Executive Director on four non-profit boards since 1990, including the International Association for Near-Death Studies (IANDS). In that capacity, she saw the tremendous need for research on the integration process and a trained support system for near death (ND) experiencers.
Under her leadership, Mrs. Stout helped to found the American Center for the Integration of Spiritually Transformative Experiences (ACISTE) established in 2009 to help meet the integration needs of people who have had near-death or similar life-altering, spiritual experiences. ACISTE is involved with conducting research, providing training, offering education and developing support programs for ND experiencers in the US. Over 300 ND experiencers and mental health professionals are currently involved in ACISTE programs.
Mrs. Stout, who is married to Scripps scientist, Dr. Charles Stout, is frequently invited to speak on topics related to spiritually transformative experiences.
Dorothy Walters, PhD
Dorothy Walters, Ph. D., was a professor of English and Women's Studies during her long professional career. In l981, at the age of 53, she experienced massive, unexpected Kundalini awakening, a process which continued to play out over the next 30 years. For her, the experience brought myriad bliss/ecstasy experiences, as well as many challenges. Above all, it demonstrated to her in a profound way the connection between human and divine, and demonstrated that all things are possible. She is author of: Unmasking the Rose: A Record of a Kundalini Initiation, Marrow of Flame: Poems of the Spiritual Journey, A Cloth of Fine Gold: Poems of the Inner Journey, and The Ley LInes of the Soul: Poems of Ecstasy and Ascension.
Barbara Harris Whitfield, RT, CMT
Barbara is a researcher, therapist and author. She shares a private practice in Atlanta, with her husband Charles Whitfield, MD helping adults who were traumatized as children. She presents workshops on near-death experiences and natural spirituality. She assisted Bruce Greyson, MD with the research on the aftereffects of having a near-death experience including the Physio-Kundalini syndrome. Barbara is the author of many articles and seven books including Spiritual Awakenings: Insights of the Near-Death Experience and other Doorways to Our Soul (Health Communications Inc 1995), and The Power of Humility: From Conflict to Peace (written with Charles Whitfield, Russell Park and Jyoti, HCI 2004), The Natural Soul: Unity with the Spiritual Energy that connects us, what It looks like and how it feels (Muse House Press, January 2010) and Victim to Survivor and Thriver (MHP 2011). These books are the result of interviewing hundreds of people on the after effects of their near-death experiences and spiritual awakenings in general. Barbara is also one of the contributors to Kundalini Rising (Sounds True 2009). She is past president and a member of the Board of Directors of KRN and has sat on the executive board of the International Association for Near-Death Studies. She is a consulting editor and contributor for the Journal of Near-Death Studies. For more information please visit www.BarbaraWhitfield.com, Barbara-Whitfield.Blogspot.com. She is a co-author, research subject and sits on the panel for the new research into CMPEs – Conjunctions of Meaningful Parallel Events.
Charles Whitfield, MD
He is a pioneer in trauma recovery, including the way we remember childhood and other trauma and abuse. A physician and front-line therapist who assists trauma survivors and spiritual seekers in their healing, he is the author of over fifty published articles, and 14 books on trauma psychology and recovery including Healing the Child Within and Alcoholism and Spirituality. He lives and practices addiction medicine, trauma psychology, and holistic psychiatry in Atlanta, GA. Dr. Whitfield is one of the contributors in the compilation, Kundalini Rising, published by Sounds True. He is co-author and sits of the research panel for the new research into CMPEs – Conjunctions of Meaningful Parallel Events. For more information go to www.cbwhit.com
