605. Chelan Harkin - a podcast by Rick Archer

Chelan Harkin has been channeling ecstatic poetry for years and has now published two books in the past seven months, Susceptible to Light and Let Us Dance!: The Stumble and Whirl With The Beloved. Her publishing journey has been mystical and transformational and filled with"prayer experiments"gone right. Chelan has regularly been compared to the great mystic poets, Rumi, Hafiz, and Rilke. She lives in a geographically spectacular region of Washington State, The Columbia Gorge, with her husband and two small children. In her poetry and in her life, Chelan continually invites the fumbling, suffering parts of our nature and our divinity to meet for tea in the heart, to have a great laugh, and share a big hug.

Website: chelanharkin.comFacebook page

Some of the main points discussed in this conversation:Chelan’s background and introduction to poetry by Hafiz. Her shift from effortful poetry to spontaneous “downloads”.
Chelan reads some of her favorite poems throughout the interview.Chelan’s subjective experience when a poem starts to “come through” – a full-body tingle and a sense of urgency; a mingling of her spirit with something larger.
What the world might be like if everyone unlocked their full potential.Chelan’s transformative experience with hypnosis as a process for the development of consciousness.
There is no joy in smallness. Chelan reads the poem ‘I AM TOO MUCH!’The growth potential of marriage and parenthood.
Opening the heart and connecting with the divinity within us.Sensitivity to ‘truth’ and addressing that which is not aligned with it.
Being able to have pain move through us without hurting us.Chelan’s collaboration with Daniel Ladinsky.
Chelan’s upbringing in the Baháʼí faith. All people and religions are fundamentally united in a common source.Chelan’s mystical experience and creative inspiration in a cell in Israel in which the founder of the Baháʼí faith was imprisoned.
Developing a harmonious relationship between knowledge and experience.Chelan’s current and future projects.

Discussion of this interview in the BatGap Community Facebook Group.Transcript of this interview.

Interview recorded July 3, 2021Video and audio below. Audio also available as a Podcast.


YouTube Video Chapters:00:00:00 - Introduction to Buddha at the Gas Pump
00:04:59 - Connecting with Hafez: Inspiring Poetry and Publishing Success00:09:55 - The Spontaneous Poem
00:14:14 - The Feeling of a Coming Poem00:17:55 - Unleashing Our Inner Genius
00:21:48 - The Birth of Creativity00:26:12 - Healing through Hypnotherapy
00:30:33 - Reframing and Reclaiming"I'm Too Much"00:35:15 - Inspiration from Night Walks
00:39:32 - The Humility of Relationships00:43:15 - The Worst Thing We Ever Did
00:47:36 - Opening Up to Vulnerability00:52:09 - The Strength in Sensitivity
00:56:56 - The Essence of Infinity and Connection01:01:11 - A Serendipitous Connection with Daniel
01:05:35 - Summoning Poetry with Hafez01:09:32 - Chelan's Spiritual Upbringing
01:13:31 - A Sacred Experience in Bahala's Prison Cell
01:17:04 - Chelan's Aneurysm Journey
01:20:33 - The Impact of Diet and Social Media on Channeling Abilities01:24:39 - The Thirst for Intellectual Knowledge
01:28:52 - The Potency of Embodied Spirituality01:33:28 - The Power of Prayer
01:37:34 - Finding Joy in Work01:41:18 - The God Who Made the Octopus
01:45:28 - The Cosmic Wallop and Cosmic Timing01:49:19 - Discovering the Poet Within
01:52:33 - The Power of Language01:56:21 - Living an Authentic Truth
01:59:41 - Openness to Opportunities02:03:11 - Farewell and Good Wishes

Further episodes of Buddha at the Gas Pump

Further podcasts by Rick Archer

Website of Rick Archer