Paul Robear – Feminism and Religion

The Circle as a Field of Human Integration by Paul Robear

This blogpost is included as part of FAR’s co-operation with other organizations to highlight and amplify each other’s voices. Paul Robear is President and Executive Director of The Cuyamungue Institute (CUYA).
CUYA is the international home of Ritual Postures and a global leader in transformative experiences rooted in ancient traditions — offering workshops, research, and online learning that open pathways to expanded states of consciousness.
CUYA, The Felicitas D. Goodman Institute is an independent, 501c3 not-for-profit educational organization committed to the study of “ASC” Altered States of Consciousness as a natural extension of the human experience.

Finding Coherence in Shared Presence

Why have human beings always gathered in circles?

I have often wondered why I am instinctively drawn to them; my body seems to recognize a quiet stability before my mind can explain it.

The circle itself generates a kind of collective coherence.

Long before there were formal doctrines or institutions, there were fires, drums, breath, and bodies moving together in a circle. Across cultures and continents, people entered rhythm — through chant, movement, and synchronized breath. While these practices were often interpreted through religious frameworks, something more fundamental was occurring beneath the symbolism.

In a circle, every face can be seen, every movement sensed. Nothing approaches from behind. The body registers this orientation as safety.

Ritual, then, may be one of humanity’s oldest technologies for collective coherence.

Renewal, Reflection, & Resonance by Paul Robear

The Power of Introspection in Personal Transformation by Paul Robear of the Cuyamungue Institute

Self-reflection helps us understand who we are, what we believe in, and why we think or act the way we do. It is a key element of self-improvement. I have found that by reflecting regularly, I greatly increase my chances of making healthy changes that support growth in my life.

Throughout my life, I’ve felt a yearning to better understand my own strengths and weaknesses. From an early age, I was drawn to moments of pause and deep reflection. These pauses became opportunities to notice what within me was ready to be renewed. I think of this as the space where we begin to hear the resonance of our own inner wisdom.

To give shape to this inner journey and to make it simple and memorable, I began framing it around three guiding words, each beginning with the letter “R.” Over time, these words became touchstones for clarity and meaning in my practice of introspection.

Renewal: A Quiet Beginning: Renewal is usually quiet, subtle, and deeply personal. Just as nature renews itself in cycles, our lives also hold rhythms of renewal. These moments invite us to release what no longer serves us and to open to fresh possibilities. Renewal is not about reinventing ourselves, but about remembering our capacity for growth and allowing space for it to emerge.

The Cuyamungue Institute, part 2 by Janet Maika’i Rudolph

This is part 2 of a blogpost based on an interview I did with Laura Lee at the Cuyamungue Institute. Yesterday’s post concluded with the concept of natural body positions and how these inspired the founder, Dr. Felicitas Goodman. She was also inspired by yoga postures. Laura describes Dr. Goodman’s thinking.

With yoga postures, even sitting in them for five minutes, we can note some interesting physiological reactions. Non-invasive tests were done such as galvanic skin response, breath rate, motility of the intestines, with just sitting in a yoga posture. Interestingly, many of our postures that we see from around the world look like yoga postures. These can be sitting cross legged or kneeling with your hands and arms in a specific configuration in your lap. Goodman had the idea, ‘I should add that to my ritual.’ She started to experiment with postures. And indeed, that pushed it from, let’s have a trip with some drumming, to, oh my gosh — now here we’re touching the hem of something larger than ourselves.

The Cuyamungue Institute, part 1 by Janet Maika’i Rudolph

Director Paul Robear in a pose based on this artifact from Chichen Itza

The Cuyamungue Institute was founded in 1978, in Santa Fe New Mexico by Dr. Felicitas Goodman. It is based on work that Dr. Goodman was doing with ritual trance poses as a means to encourage ecstatic states, gain knowledge, and have otherworldly communications and experiences. The poses Dr. Goodman studied are based on early statues and images found in various cultures. She became aware that these poses of ancient sculptures and drawings were often ritual instructions that people could replicate. By holding these positions in a ritualist manner, she found that people had these common or related experiences which she characterized loosely as healing, divination, metamorphosis, and/or spirit journeys. This 2-part blogpost is about her journey and what she discovered. It is based on an interview I did with Laura Lee, who along with her husband Paul, are directors of the Cuyamungue Institute.