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to breakthrough, on the hero’s journey.

Community

is fundamental to spiritual growth.

Spiritual Training

with experienced guides.

Active Practice

is as important as sitting meditation.

Courses & Retreats

In the 2019 Program for Spiritual Awakening

Benefit from the support of experienced mentors and an inspiring community with online courses and meditation retreats.

Learn

New Book

Wasteland to Pureland: Reflections on the Path to Awakening

by Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat

Wasteland to Pureland is a contemporary guide to integrating spiritual practice with everyday life. Learn how the daily grist of work, relationships, and challenges can become our richest resources. Honest, edgy, and accessible, this book is for anyone ready to shed limiting beliefs, and wake up to the vibrant, creative nature of reality.

These teachings emerge out of decades of practice and study by master teachers Acariya Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat. Grounded in the belief that awakening is available to everyone, they teach us how to reunite with our gifts, and become agents of compassion and transformation, personally, interpersonally and globally.

About the Book

Buy the Book

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Doug & Catherine's teachings are a rallying cry for all those who want no-holds-barred, honest guidance on the path of awakening.  I'm thoroughly inspired by the spiritual potential we all have, and sobered by the challenges we face as a species and global consciousness.  The path they lay out makes it clear that the journey is worth taking.

Cara Conroy-Low

Acupuncturist, Canada

Doug and Catherine are always burning calories to get you back on a path that can lead toward greater self-awareness. When I am with these two very clear individuals, I am humbled by their dedication to others, and understand the every-waking-moment responsibility that comes with their calling.

Peter Ujlaki

Fine Art Dealer, Japan

If you get a chance to study with Doug and Catherine, don't miss it. Through the power of long dedication, deep meditation, and wise guidance, life can definitely be transformed.

Paul Jaffe

Retired Professor & Meditation Teacher, New York

What is the Purpose of Spiritual Practice?

Life is a fascinating journey, filled with discovery, exploration and awesome experiences. It can also be fraught with suffering and sorrow, often unnecessarily. Happiness is the original state that shines through after unnecessary suffering has been eliminated. We’re dedicated to sharing this path.

 

A Modern Spiritual Path

Our mandate is to support as many beings as possible to experience spiritual awakening. Our overall approach to the the spiritual path, includes four important aspects

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Four Aspects for a Modern Spiritual Path

Click each tab below to read about the four important aspects of a modern spiritual path:
The universe is an amazing, interactive campus, and there is so much to learn and discover. In addition to philosophy, we use science, the arts, kinesthetics and other kinds of direct experience to develop and integrate our various interests.

A truly inspiring spiritual path includes discovery, exploration and study. It incorporates both formal study and apprenticeship-style modalities.

Formal study opportunities with Planet Dharma include online or in-person courses, meditation retreats and public classes.

Meditation is indispensable to spiritual awakening. In its various forms –such as sitting practice, prayer and contemplation – it speeds up an individual’s spiritual and personal unfoldment. It helps us integrate the various parts of the psyche. It develops great calm and concentration that lead to greater states of bliss.

Meditation also brings us vast insight and understanding, the building blocks of wisdom. We use both Eastern and Western methodologies to achieve these aims.

Our modern lives call for a spiritual practice that goes beyond the meditation cushion – to bring awareness and meditation to every action and interaction we have, 24/7, 365.  Awakening in Action, or “Karma Yoga” is a spiritual path for the 21st century and beyond.

In Karma Yoga, we watch the patterns that arise as we interact with others. We use the same principles that we’ve learned in meditation and apply it to our work, our relationships and our communities.

We all have buried aspects of our psyches that became suppressed due to our family and societal conditioning. These are what Freud called the subconscious and Jung called the shadow.  Spiritual awakening is also about making this unconscious aspect conscious.

It’s important that we are clear and honest: by its very nature, shadow work is not fun or pretty. It takes courage and fortitude to see parts of our being that are not like we wish them to be, and to dedicate one’s energy to transforming that.

We believe that integrating our shadow is fundamental and one of the fastest ways to unfold spiritually, and reduce our suffering.

Awakening is your birthright.

Current Training Schedule

Retreats

Mon 27

Year of Pureland Program for Spiritual Awakening

January 1 - December 31
Aug 09

Buddhas in Action: Awakening in Daily Life

August 9 @ 8:00 am - August 24 @ 5:00 pm MDT
Oct 11

Becoming a Work of Art: Dharma Foundations Retreat

October 11 - October 13

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Public Classes

Mon 27

Year of Pureland Program for Spiritual Awakening

January 1 - December 31
Jul 05

Calgary Talk: Beyond Mindfulness: Becoming a Work of Art

July 5 @ 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm MDT

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Online Courses

Mon 27

Year of Pureland Program for Spiritual Awakening

January 1 - December 31
Jun 03

Riding the Dragon: Spiritual Awakening in Modern Life

June 3 @ 8:00 am - June 30 @ 5:00 pm MDT
Sep 09

Crazy Wisdom: Taking a Walk on the Wild Side

September 9 - September 30

View More…

Office Hours

Jun 09

Office Hours: Online Q&A

June 9 @ 3:00 pm - 4:00 pm MDT
Jun 23

Office Hours: Online Q&A

June 23 @ 3:00 pm - 4:00 pm MDT

View More…

Awakening Resources: Read, Watch, Listen

See all: Planet Dharma content. Like this content? Get it delivered to your inbox: Subscribe Now.

Read: Articles

Embracing Your Buddha Body: Movement Meditation

You will experience in your spiritual life some degree of physical discomfort in the process of realizing your Buddha-body. The practice of movement meditation is to become aware of, and then relax or release the tension and pain. Enjoy this month’s read!

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Are You Running on Empty?

In order for you to have wisdom, one of the first things required is some space between you and your objects. We call that emptiness.

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Be a Stubborn Toddler and Other Tips for Meditation

Do you struggle in meditation? Does your mind wander? Here are some tips for improving your meditation practice, including becoming like a stubborn toddler.

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Human Consciousness is a Palace

You are ‘conscious’ and your human consciousness has vast potential. The spiritual journey and meditation is the key to leaving the ‘basement’ to explore the great ‘palace’ above.

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Book Launch: Wasteland to Pureland – Teachings of Dharma

Teachings on Society’s Struggles and What We Can Do   The book  launch for Wasteland to Pureland, a collection of teachings and reflections from Dharma Teachers Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat, is fast approaching on September 21, 2018. Here is what they had...
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Overcoming Hurt

We all have experienced hurt from life experiences: rejection, failure, shame. This may cause us to hide and protect ourselves, but this prevents us from truly showing up in the world. How do we overcome hurt? Dharma teachers Doug and Catherine Sensei share some of...
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How to Awaken Faster in One Easy Step: Moving From Self to Service

When we aren’t meditating or working, what are we doing? Too often we are focused on ego preferences – the food we like, the people we like, the movies we like or dislike. But moving one’s focus from ‘self’, to ‘service’ is fundamental to the deepening of enlightenment.

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Video: The Three Most Important Parts of Your Astrology Chart

Are you new to astrology? Astrology is a great awareness tool for greater freedom from habitual patterning. This video explains the three (or four) most important parts of your astrology chart. Learn how to get started, and what these important basics mean for you.

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Studying the Western Mysteries: To Will, Know, Dare and be Silent

Embarking on the Hero's Journey Entering into the journey of self-exploration calls for a hero. In studying the Western Mysteries, this journey is called the hero’s journey. “To will, to know, to dare and to be silent”, therein lie the instructions for this particular...
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Opening to Generosity, Again

One of the things that drew me to Buddhism is also one of its most frustrating aspects.  We are asked to look into each experience itself and see what it has to teach us. We aren't supposed to just blindly follow the Buddha or living spiritual teachers.  We are meant...
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Watch: Videos

Video: Monsters in the Closet

by | May 2, 2019 | Videos | 0 Comments

What is the ‘shadow’ and why is shining light on it so important for spiritual awakening? Find out in this candid talk on ‘monsters in the closet’, with Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat Sensei. This was recorded live on April 13th, 2019, at Enlighten-Up, their monthly facebook livestream event. Watch now:

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Video: Knowledge vs Experience

by | April 6, 2019 | Videos | 0 Comments

If you want to get wiser, it takes knowledge as well as experience. How can we balance both? In this video, Doug & Catherine Sensei examine the value of physical and emotional experience, alongside information based knowledge.

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Video: Why Awaken?

by | March 9, 2019 | Awakening, Videos | 0 Comments

Why awaken? What are the benefits of spiritual awakening? Dharma Teachers Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat share their thoughts and experience in their monthly livestream – Enlighten-Up.

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Video: The Pearl Without Price & Other Inner Revolutions

by | October 4, 2018 | Videos | 0 Comments

  This video was filmed at a live class a Watkins Book Store in London on August 23, 2018 celebrating the upcoming launch of Dharma teachers Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat's new book Wasteland to Pureland. Doug and Catherine share themes of spiritual...
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Watkins Bookstore

by | September 15, 2018 | Videos | 0 Comments

Interview with Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat ~ authors of “Wasteland to Pureland"   Dharma teachers Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat talk about their upcoming book Wasteland to Pureland coming out September 21. Learn about how the Dharma path can help...
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Banyen Books and Sound Interview

by | September 15, 2018 | Videos | 0 Comments

Wasteland to Pureland: Doug Duncan Sensei & Catherine Pawasarat This is a delightful inteview about shedding limitations of the spiritual life and continuously cultivating wholesome mindstates that contribute to harmony and happiness for all beings on this planet....
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What is the Purpose of Spiritual Practice?

by | May 25, 2018 | Videos | 0 Comments

Why bother with spiritual practice? What is the point of it? In this video, Dharma Teachers Doug & Catherine Sensei explain why the purpose of spiritual practice is not about ‘fixing’ yourself or the world – its about asking a better question – what is human consciousness capable of?

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You Say Love, I Say Loove: Dharmic Astrology Tips for Relationships

by | May 4, 2018 | Astro-Dharma, Videos | 0 Comments

Key parts of your astrology chart for relationships In this video, Dharma Teacher Catherine Pawasarat Sensei shares some astrology tips for relationships. How can you use astrology to aid in your practice of Dharma and awakening? What are your styles of relating with...
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Video: The Power of Western Meditations & Star Group

by | April 5, 2018 | Videos | 0 Comments

Meditations from the Western spiritual traditions are creative and imaginative. In this video Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat share about the Western Mysteries and why Star Group and Western meditations are so powerful.

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Video: How to Conquer Your Money Worries…Be Generous!

by | March 24, 2018 | Videos | 0 Comments

Do you suffer from money worries? Learn how you can use basic Buddhist principles to conquer your money woes once and for all. It’s a solution you would never expect.

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Listen: Audio

Season 3 Trailer: Why Awaken?

by | May 21, 2019 | Podcasts | 0 Comments

Why Awaken? Today's episode explores the idea of personal vision and how it relates to spiritual unfoldment. It's part of our celebration for the upcoming release of more podcast episodes from Planet Dharma. Season 3 will begin in mid-July to celebrate Doug Sensei’s...
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The spiritual life and financial well-being [37:19]

by | November 18, 2018 | Podcasts | 0 Comments

  In this podcast Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat are interviewed by Deborah Price, founder of the “The Money Coaching Institute” about their new book Wasteland to Pureland.   Together they explore topics of spirituality and economics. A big challenge for many...
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Finding your growth edge [12:52]

by | July 4, 2018 | Podcasts | 0 Comments

What`s your most challenging growth edge?  What sparks you?  This lively, informal and interactive extract is from a class in our 2017 "Buddhas in Action" retreat at Clear Sky Retreat Center in B.C., Canada, with Achariya Doug Duncan, Catherine Pawasarat Sensei &...
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Tips on becoming a “Buddha in action” [17:31]

by | June 16, 2018 | Podcasts | 0 Comments

In this new Planet Dharma episode, Achariya Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat Sensei shine light on the principle that “buddhas in action” (spiritual explorers waking up and growing through the path of selfless service) continually explore the question “What is...
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Healing the Splits Within [4:50]

by | April 26, 2018 | Podcasts | 0 Comments

How do we heal the splits within? In this 5 minute podcast episode, Achariya Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat Sensei elaborate on this question. They share that complete or wholesome effort is when we are in the moment and not distracted by conflicting emotions or...
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A vision bigger than your lifetime [10:25]

by | April 19, 2018 | Podcasts | 0 Comments

Letting the study of nature and consciousness inform your vision and career Catherine Sensei begins this episode explaining, “The natural cycles of nature are in essence the same as the natural cycles of dharma, karma and consciousness."  There's a natural wisdom and...
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Perfect Generosity [4:02]

by | March 20, 2018 | Podcasts | 0 Comments

In this podcast Achariya Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat Sensei expand on the six perfections (Paramis) of Generosity, Discipline, Acceptance, Effort, Concentration, Insight and share “If you can perfect generosity, all the rest will follow.” When we do not apply...
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Basic Trust in the Universe

by | October 19, 2013 | Podcasts | 0 Comments

The first step in spiritual awakening is becoming aware of our ego structure -- actually perceiving the particular beliefs and images that we have identified with and taken to be true -- then dissolving that, letting go of that part of one's identity. --- Doug Sensei...
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The Next Step of Unfoldment

by | October 5, 2013 | Podcasts | 0 Comments

In order for you to move to your next understanding -- the next stage of unfoldment -- how you position yourself in relationship to your world has to change. --- Spiritual unfoldment talk transcript:"The important message that I want to convey tonight is: in order for...
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Why Practice the Paramis? (Part 2 of 2)

by | October 5, 2013 | Podcasts | 0 Comments

Part 2: Paralyzed and Free! A quadriplegic man in the hospital for 25 years sees the spaciousness through which all manifestations can arise, including the mind. Was no longer obsessed with the arisings. --- Part two of the "Why Practice the Paramis?" podcast from...
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Planet Dharma is at Mountain Waters Retreats.

2 days ago

Planet Dharma

Congrats to the fantastic group who came to the golden and dark shadows retreat last weekend! Wonderful work was done. and special thanks to our hosts Michelle Heinz and #mountainwatersretreat. ...

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