A Ranchi Invitation

Born to Flourish

An online global pod · and a gathering in Ranchi

Dear friends,

Something rare is happening this April — a seven-day online pod led by Richie Davidson, named one of Time magazine's 100 Most Influential People in the World, and Cortland Dahl, who spent a decade in Himalayan retreat studying ancient Tibetan wisdom traditions before earning a pioneering PhD in contemplative science. Together, they've spent their careers doing something few have: rigorously bridging the insights of modern neuroscience with the depth of ancient contemplative wisdom — and asking what that means for how we live. The question they're exploring is one of the most important of our time: what does it actually take to flourish? We'd love for you to join us in this global gathering.

And then — once the pod wraps — we will fix a date and meet in person here in Ranchi for a half-day to reflect together, deepen the bonds we've formed, and bring these learnings into our everyday lives and community.

01

Why Flourishing — and Why Now

We are living through a quiet emergency. Loneliness now carries the same health risk as smoking fifteen cigarettes a day. Our minds wander for nearly half of all waking hours — pulled by worry, regret, or the constant glow of screens. And yet, decades of rigorous neuroscience point to something both radical and hopeful: flourishing is a trainable skill. Not a personality type. Not a privilege. A skill. The same biological systems that leave us anxious and distracted can be trained. Their revolutionary research shows just five minutes of deliberate daily practice can significantly improve our wellbeing — to live with clarity, resilience, compassion, and purpose. The capacity to flourish is already built into us.

02

Your Guides: Richie & Cort

Richard J. Davidson is a neuroscientist whose career changed direction after a single question from the Dalai Lama in 1992. He had spent years studying brain circuits of anxiety and depression. The Dalai Lama asked simply: "Why can't you use those same tools to study kindness and compassion?" Richie later called it a total wake-up call. He went on to found the Center for Healthy Minds at UW–Madison, publishing over 600 peer-reviewed articles on the brain, emotion, and contemplative practice.

Cortland Dahl came to this work through struggle — as an anxious college student who found his way to meditation, then spent a decade living in Tibetan refugee settlements in Nepal and India, studying under revered teachers. He earned the first-ever PhD in Mind, Brain, and Contemplative Science from UW–Madison and designed the Healthy Minds Program — a free wellbeing app now downloaded over a million times across 140 countries. Together, they host Dharma Lab, a growing community at the intersection of neuroscience and contemplative wisdom.

03

About This Pod

Over seven days — drawn from their new book, Born to Flourish — Richie and Cort guide a small, intimate online circle through four trainable capacities: Awareness, Connection, Insight, and Purpose. Each day brings a short reading, a guided practice, and one small real-world experiment — followed by shared reflection with fellow podmates across the globe. The dialogue is the living heart of it. One of the most striking findings from this research: flourishing is contagious. When we cultivate these qualities in ourselves, their effects ripple outward.

04

Then — Together in Ranchi

Once the global pod closes, let's not let the momentum fade. We'll fix a date for a half-day in-person gathering here in Ranchi — a chance to sit together, share what moved us, and explore how we might carry these learnings into our lives and community. No curriculum, no agenda beyond genuine conversation and kinship. The research suggests that when people who've practiced together meet in person, something deepens. We're going to find out.

05

Your Ranchi Hosts

You don't need to have meditated before. You don't need to have read the book.
What helps is genuine curiosity about your own inner life.

Two steps to join us — both take under two minutes:

Questions? Just email rohit@servicespace.org
100% free. Gift economy. No ads, no strings.

With warmth from Ranchi