#1 - Taboos and Truths: Faith, Rebellion, Polyamory, and Meditation - "In Conversation with Dr. Matthew Crossley"

Welcome to SM UNCENSORED!Out with the old, in with the exciting! We had a podcast called MS Uncensored, but we've hit the reset button for a thrilling new adventure.This episode is the beginning of a new wave of ideas that Maz and I have been working on. Our special guest, Dr. Matt Crossley, is an expert on the brain, an avid meditator, and a fellow philosophy nerdWe start off with exploring Maz's journey towards religion and Samim's opposite journey running away from it. This offshoots into a discussion about how perverse addiction has become in our society (e.g. porn, drugs, social media). Matt suggests a solution known as 'equanimity'...Moving on to the second half, we dive deep into the world of sex and relationships. We talk about the popular distinction between "good" vs. "bad" boys. Why it is so exciting to rebel, and how this shapes a lot of our sexual taboos. There is also a novel discussion about the benefits of polyamory and open relationships. Throughout this section we all share lots of personal anecdotes which get quite detailed and funny at times.Then just as we thought the episode had come to an end there is a natural riff which brings all the topics together. How is surrender any different to faith? What should we do when we are faced with unpleasant thoughts? and Who are "we"?Timestamps:00:00:00 - Introduction00:07:30 - Is faith dangerous? (Discussing our personal journeys with religion)00:30:00 - Atheism vs. Oneness (Exploring different worldviews)00:37:00 - Knowledge as an antidote for prejudice (Discussing the role of knowledge in combating bias)00:44:00 - Addiction in the new world ("Equanimity" as a solution to addiction)00:58:45 - Rebellion, attraction and bad boys01:21:15 - Leaning into sex 'post-religion' (Samim's anecdotes)01:32:00 - Polyamory, non-monogamy and healthy relationships01:56:30 - Last remarks02:00:00 - The power of surrender, and what to do with 'unpleasant thoughts'?02:23:30 - Wrap up*BTW, We'll be posting a new episode on Friday mornings once a fortnight :)