The Meaningful Life with Andrew G. Marshall

Do we need a complete rethink of the rituals we use to mark the end of life? This week Andrew talks to undertaker and author RU CALLENDER about what he’s learnt over the course of his career.  Ru Callender became an undertaker in order to offer people a more honest experience than the stilted formality of traditional ‘Victorian’ funerals. Driven by raw emotion and the unresolved grief of losing his own parents, Ru brought an outsider, ‘DIY’ ethos to the business of death.  Ru has carried coffins across windswept beaches, sat in pubs with caskets on beer-stained tables, helped children fire flaming arrows into their father’s funeral pyre, turned modern occult rituals into performance art and, with the band members of the KLF, is building the People’s Pyramid of bony bricks in Liverpool – all in the name of creating truly authentic experiences that celebrate those who are no longer here and those who remain. Subscriber Content This Week  If you’re a subscriber to The Meaningful Life (via Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Patreon), this week you’ll be hearing:  How to design a ritual Three things Ru Callender knows to be true. AND subscribers also access all of our previous bonus content - a rich trove of insight on love, life and meaning created by Andrew and his interviewees. Follow Up Get Andrew’s free guide to difficult conversations with your partner: How to Tell Your Partner Difficult Things  Take a look at Andrew’s new online relationship course: My Best Relationship Tools  Read Ru Callender’s book, What Remains? Life, Death and the Human Art of Undertaking Follow Ru Callender on X/Twitter @wayswithweirds Andrew offers regular advice on love, marriage and finding meaning in your life via his social channels. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube @andrewgmarshall   

What does it mean to be wise? Do we grow in wisdom as we age? Pioneering neuropsychiatric researcher Dr Dilip Jeste has spent years investigating the biological and cognitive roots of wisdom.  In this reissued classic episode, Andrew and Dilip discuss what we mean when we talk about wisdom, and whether we can, in fact, grow wiser. Dilip describes what he has established as the key components of the wise individual: Self-reflection Empathy and compassion (including for yourself) Emotional regulation and resilience Gratitude Openness to new experiences Spirituality Andrew and Dilip also talk about cultural differences in the treatment of older people, and how we miss out when we ignore the wisdom of our parents and grandparents.  Dr Dilip Jeste is a neuropsychiatrist, as well as the author of Wiser: The Scientific Roots of Wisdom, Compassion and What Makes Us Good. Dilip has spent more than 20 years studying aspects of wisdom and healthy aging, and is a professor of psychiatry and neurosciences and the director of the Center for Healthy Aging at UC San Diego. He is also a past president of the American Psychiatric Association.  Subscriber Content This Week  If you’re a subscriber to The Meaningful Life (via Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Patreon), this week you’ll be hearing:  Three things Dilip Jeste knows to be true. AND subscribers also access all of our previous bonus content - a rich trove of insight on love, life and meaning created by Andrew and his interviewees. Follow Up Get Andrew’s free guide to difficult conversations with your partner: How to Tell Your Partner Difficult Things  Take a look at Andrew’s new online relationship course: My Best Relationship Tools  Read Dr Dilip Jeste’s book  Wiser: The Scientific Roots of Wisdom, Compassion and What Makes Us Good Visit Dr Dilip Jeste’s website Follow the UC San Diego Center for Healthy Aging on Twitter @UCSDHealthAging and Facebook @ucsd.healthy.aging Andrew offers regular advice on love, marriage and finding meaning in your life via his social channels. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube @andrewgmarshall   

What if the answers you’re looking for in your life were available to you every night, if only you could learn to pay attention to your dreams? This week Andrew welcomes to the podcast the eminent psychoanalyst and This Jungian Life co-host JOSEPH LEE,  co-author of the new book Dream Wise: Unlocking the Meaning of Your Dreams.  Andrew and Joseph discuss how developing a practice of dreamwork can enable you to start a dialogue between your surface and your depths. For many, dream analysis quickly becomes an essential aid in achieving a deeper understanding of the self.  Andrew and Joseph embark on an in-depth analysis of Andrew’s recent dream about an encounter in a science laboratory, offering a masterclass in the art of dream interpretation.  Joseph R. Lee is a senior certified Jungian analyst; a leading podcaster who introduces Jung’s ideas to a broad national and international audience; a lecturer; and a seasoned clinician. His private practice focuses on the psycho-spiritual healing and strengthening of men. Joseph is also the co-creator of Dream School, a 12-month online program in the art of Jungian dream interpretation.  Subscriber Content This Week  If you’re a subscriber to The Meaningful Life (via Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Patreon), this week you’ll be hearing:  Joseph Lee shares what makes his life meaningful. Andrew reflects on the experience of having his dream analysed by Joseph Lee. AND subscribers also access all of our previous bonus content - a rich trove of insight on love, life and meaning created by Andrew and his interviewees. Follow Up Get Andrew’s free guide to difficult conversations with your partner: How to Tell Your Partner Difficult Things  Take a look at Andrew’s new online relationship course: My Best Relationship Tools   Read Dream Wise: Unlocking the Meaning of Your Dreams, by Lisa Marchiano, Deborah Stewart and Joseph Lee. Listen to This Jungian Life podcast. Take a look at Dream School, This Jungian Life’s 12-month online course in the art of Jungian dream interpretation. Get 10% off until December 31st with the code Holiday2024.  Follow Joseph Lee on Instagram @jungiananalyst, and This Jungian Life on YouTube, Instagram and X/Twitter @thisjungianlifepodcast.   Join our Supporters Club to access exclusive behind-the-scenes content, fan requests and the chance to ask Andrew your own questions. Membership starts at just £4.50.  Andrew offers regular advice on love, marriage and finding meaning in your life via his social channels. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube @andrewgmarshall 

Matthew Fray is the author of the viral article “My Wife Divorced Me Because I Left the Dishes By the Sink”. His divorce left him emotionally crushed: struggling not to cry all the time, and finding it hard even to breathe.  In this reissued classic episode, Andrew and Matthew talk about the lessons of Matthew’s failed marriage, and about how Matthew is using his own experiences in his coaching work with men experiencing relationship difficulties. According to Matthew, “the things that destroy our relationships work like cancer…by the time we detect the problem, it’s already too late”. His work is based around helping men to see the problems earlier, and to build the emotional toolkit so many of them are missing. Matthew Fray works as a relationship coach and writer. He blogs at On the Rocks, and his latest book is This is How Your Marriage Ends: A Hopeful Approach to Saving Relationships.  Subscriber Content This Week  If you’re a subscriber to The Meaningful Life (via Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Patreon), this week you’ll be hearing:  Three Things Matthew Fray knows to be true. AND subscribers also access all of our previous bonus content - a rich trove of insight on love, life and meaning created by Andrew and his interviewees. Follow Up Get Andrew’s free guide to difficult conversations with your partner: How to Tell Your Partner Difficult Things  Take a look at Andrew’s new online relationship course: My Best Relationship Tools Read Matthew Fray’s book This Is How Your Marriage Ends: A Hopeful Approach to Saving Relationships Read Matthew’s writing on relationships at his blog, On the Rocks. Follow Matthew on Twitter @MBTTTR and on Facebook @matthewfrayMBTTTR  Read Andrew’s book Can We Start Again Please? Twenty Questions to Fall Back in Love Join our Supporters Club to access exclusive behind-the-scenes content, fan requests and the chance to ask Andrew your own questions. Membership starts at just £4.50.  Andrew offers regular advice on love, marriage and finding meaning in your life via his social channels. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube @andrewgmarshall