Buddhist Wisdom, Modern Life

I used to think that Buddhism and trying to "manifest" what you want don't go together. But then I realized that actually Buddhist teachings on karma tell us how to put in place the causes for getting what we want. Mind blown! Want to learn more about the basic teachings of Buddhism? You can check out my book, The Buddhist Path to Joy, here: https://geni.us/buddhistpathtojoy And my free courses on Buddhist basics for beginners here: https://geni.us/freecourses May you and all beings be well.

Today’s episode is a little different. I’m sharing some “inspirational” writing I did for my own sangha, Dawn Mountain’s, newsletter a couple of weeks ago. This is my appreciation for the dharma’s ability to help us not just feel better but also navigate the difficult times in life without giving up. I’ll share the story of how bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara got 11 heads and 1,000 arms. Want to reply? You can post on Facebook or Instagram and tag this podcast, @BuddhistWisdomModernLife. To sign up for Dawn Mountain’s mailing list and learn more about my teachers, click here: https://www.dawnmountain.org/ To learn more about Buddhism through my free courses, click here: https://geni.us/freecourses  Or get my book for beginners, The Buddhist Path to Joy, here: https://geni.us/buddhistpathtojoy May you and all beings be well.

To celebrate the Buddhist holiday of Vesak, which commemorates the birth and awakening of the Buddha, here’s a guided meditation on trusting and resting in our own buddha nature. You (yes, you!) are a buddha masquerading as a human, and the tragedy of human life is that we’ve forgotten we’re already everything we’re looking for. This meditation was recorded live as part of the Mind Body Spirit Institute’s Power of Community meditation series. To learn more and register (for free!), click here: https://geni.us/mbsipoc

This episode is a guided meditation on relaxing into the spaciousness of our true nature, which I offered for the Mind Body Spirit Institute's Power of Community series (see link below to register for free). Learning to relax into spaciousness is at the heart of the Buddhist wisdom teachings —and one of the best things we can do for our health and happiness. This meditation introduces the beautiful practice of resting in open awareness and invites us to discover the vast, open expanse that is our already-awake, already-wise true nature. It's an especially good practice for people who find themselves too tight, too contracted, and out of touch with the natural goodness of their minds and bodies. If you enjoy this practice, please share this episode and subscribe! This meditation was recorded live as part of the Mind Body Spirit Institute’s Power of Community meditation series. To learn more and register (for free!), click here: https://geni.us/mbsipoc To learn more about Buddhism through my free courses, click here: https://geni.us/freecourses Or get my book for beginners, The Buddhist Path to Joy, here: https://geni.us/buddhistpathtojoy May you and all beings be well.

In this talk, we explore Thich Nhat Hanh's interpretation of the Easter story of the death and resurrection of Jesus from a Buddhist perspective. While acknowledging that this interpretation is not representative of any given Christian interpretation, we use certain aspects of the Christian story and its interpretation for Buddhist purposes. In Christianity, Jesus is both fully human and fully divine, a concept that only applies to Jesus. However, in Buddhism, this applies to every living being. Each of us lives in both conventional and ultimate reality, and the sense of self that we think exists doesn't exist even conventionally. This sense of self obscures the reality of emptiness or Buddha nature. The Dharma path is about deconstructing the mistaken sense of self and "crossing out" the "I." This process can be painful, as it involves letting go of the human part of ourselves. However, this is what makes resurrection possible and leads to the release of our Buddha nature. Through the concepts of Anicca, Anatta, and Dukkha, we explore the tragedy of human life, in which we are both human and divine but have forgotten our divinity. We often go into the spiritual journey thinking we will become more spiritual or bigger, but at some point, we realize we have to let go of who we think we are in order to settle deeper into reality. Overall, this interpretation offers a unique perspective on the Easter story, emphasizing the universal nature of the concepts presented and the importance of letting go of the self in order to access our true nature. May you and all beings be well.

The biggest challenge most meditators face is finding enough time to practice -- and the Pomodoro Timer method is my favorite way to get around this. In this episode, I’ll dive into the Pomodoro Timer method and show you how it can help you get more time to meditate. So if you’re a meditator who always wishes you had more time for practice, listen now and download my free time tracking spreadsheet! Get the free spreadsheet and future video trainings: https://geni.us/pom4meditators Watch the video on YouTube: https://youtu.be/DHxnTE11ADU My favorite Chrome extension timer: https://geni.us/K1p1 The Pomodoro Timer method is a great way to get more time for meditation because it helps you break down your day into manageable chunks. Essentially, the Pomodoro Timer method works like this: you work for 25 minutes and then take a five minute break. After four “pomodoros” (i.e. working for 25 minutes and then taking a five minute break), you take a longer break of 15 minutes. If you use even a few of these breaks to meditate, you'll easy get 20, 30 or more minutes back from your day to nourish your spirit. Using the Pomodoro Timer method also helps you refresh your mind and finish the workday less mentally fatigued. And you can reconnect with a positive motivation for your daily work tasks. May you and all beings be well.

In today’s episode I’ll be speaking with Nina Simons, Co-founder and Chief Relationship Officer at Bioneers, who leads its Everywoman’s Leadership program. Throughout her career, Nina has worked with nearly a thousand diverse women leaders across disciplines, race, class, age and orientation to create conditions for mutual learning, trust and leadership development.  Today we’ll talk about her book Nature, Culture, and the Sacred: A Woman Listens for Leadership. The second edition just came out in June, 2022, with an accompanying discussion guide and embodied practices. You can find Nina’s book and information about Bioneers programs and events here: https://bioneers.org/ncs/ Nina mentions Deborah Eden Tull’s book Luminous Darkness: https://geni.us/5cqQ Watch The Mycelium is Listening (that Nina mentions toward the end of the episode): https://youtu.be/X56fh6MfdOw If you enjoy our conversation, please share this episode and subscribe! To learn more about Buddhism through my free courses, click here: https://geni.us/freecourses  Or get my book for beginners, The Buddhist Path to Joy, here: https://geni.us/buddhistpathtojoy May you and all beings be well.

This is a meditation I led for the Power of Community program hosted by the Houston Jung Center’s Mind Body Spirit Institute. It was recorded live, so you might hear background noises. If you’d like to join the Power of Community for free weekly meditation sessions (in English and Spanish), you can register here: https://geni.us/mbsipoc Free courses on Buddhist basics: https://geni.us/freecourses My book for beginners on the Four Noble Truths: https://geni.us/buddhistpathtojoy May you and all beings be well.

In today’s episode I’ll be speaking with Cynthia Kane, the Founder and CEO of the Kane Intentional Communication Institute, which provides services to help individuals and companies improve their communication skills and show up authentically in their most important relationships. She actually has an entire book on the topic of today’s conversation: How to Communicate Like a Buddhist.  Cynthia will share tips to help us all connect more authentically, plus she puts communication in the context of skillful speech, a vital part of Buddha’s teachings.   You can find more about Cynthia and her team and the training services they offer here: https://kanecommunicate.com/  If you enjoy our conversation, please share this episode and subscribe!   To learn more about Buddhism through my free courses, click here: https://geni.us/freecourses   Or get my book for beginners, The Buddhist Path to Joy, here: https://geni.us/buddhistpathtojoy  May all beings be well.

Welcome, friends, in today’s episode I’ll speak a bit about meditating to benefit those who have died, and then I’ll guide a short practice using the mantra of Amitabha Buddha: OM AMI DEVA HRI. (See below for a short summary.) More on Amitabha: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amit%C4%81bha If you enjoy this practice, please share this episode and subscribe! To learn more about Buddhism through my free courses, click here: https://geni.us/freecourses Or get my book for beginners, The Buddhist Path to Joy, here: https://geni.us/buddhistpathtojoy May you and all beings be well. _________________________________________________ With recent news about the deadly earthquake in Turkey and Syria (and so many other news events in which we hear about people dying suddenly), we have an opportunity to practice meditating for those who have died. You don’t have to be an expert meditator or know secret meditation practices to benefit folks in the state between death and rebirth, known in Tibetan Buddhism as the bardo state. Beings in the bardo state are said to be very sensitive to any thoughts directed toward them, which means that we can help them by directing love and compassion to them through meditation practice. In addition, the more we’re able to contemplate death and what comes after – which in Tibetan Buddhism is described as a time when our buddha nature naturally shines through since our ordinary self has been tripped away. So practicing for the dead helps them, and it helps us, too. There are many different ways to meditate for the dead, but one of the simplest is to use the mantra of Amitabha Buddha, whose name means “Infinite Light.” This mantra is a prayer for the departed to be reborn in the Pure Land, a paradise realm. The mantra is: OM AMI DEVA HRI. To use this mantra, simply sit in a comfortable position and repeat the Amitabha mantra either aloud or silently to yourself, picturing the infinite light of this buddha wrapping those who’ve passed in comfort, love, and peace. You can do this for as long as you like. You may find it helpful to practice this meditation regularly, especially if you are struggling with grief. It can be a very comforting practice, and it can bring you some peace of mind knowing that you are supporting the deceased on their journey.

Welcome, friends, in today’s episode I’ll be speaking with author, Zen monk, and founder of the Ithaca Zen Center Yoshin David Radin. Sylvia Boorstein (co-founder of Spirit Rock Meditation Center) described his new book, A Temporary Affair, like this: “These short discourses by an old Zen priest facing his possible imminent death are relaxed and friendly in tone. They speak directly to the heart of human suffering, the confusion that comes from not understanding what is clearly available for us to feel directly and be liberated. It is a book I keep on my bedside table, at close hand when I need a dose of encouragement.” I hope you enjoy this conversation with Yoshin David Radin. You can read an excerpt from A Temporary Affair on Tricycle’s website here: https://tricycle.org/article/zazen-relaxing-mind Visit Yoshin David Radin’s center: https://ithacazencenter.org/ Find A Temporary Affair here: https://geni.us/tempaffair May you and all beings be well. If you enjoy our conversation, please share this episode and subscribe! To learn more about Buddhism through my free courses, click here: https://geni.us/freecourses Or get my book for beginners, The Buddhist Path to Joy, here: https://geni.us/buddhistpathtojoy May you and all beings be well.

New year, new you? Come get support and connect with fellow seekers at these live online events! Impermanence and buddha nature with my lamas (and sometimes me) at Dawn Mountain's virtual temple: https://www.dawnmountain.org/teaching-tuesdays-2/ Bring your spirituality to work -- and de-stress your brain while you're at it: https://junghouston.app.neoncrm.com/np/clients/junghouston/event.jsp?event=9873 Join me and other Mind Body Spirit Institute faculty members for short (free) meditations each Tuesday and Thursday: https://junghouston.app.neoncrm.com/np/clients/junghouston/event.jsp?event=9816 The first two options are paid, but no one will be turned away for lack of funds. May you and all beings be well.

We've probably all wished we had more time for spiritual practice, and you might have made a resolution to meditate (or journal, pray, etc.) more this year.    But what do we have to give up to make space for what's most important?   In this video, I share a big lesson from grad school that helps me prioritize what's most important... with some help from Marie Kondo!   Happy New Year.  :)   If you enjoyed these reflections, please share this episode and subscribe!   To learn more about Buddhism through my free courses, click here: https://geni.us/freecourses    Or get my book for beginners, The Buddhist Path to Joy, here: https://geni.us/buddhistpathtojoy   May you and all beings be well.

This meditation uses the imagery of descending into a sacred pool inside a sacred cave to offer an opportunity for renewal: letting the ego self dissolve to light, then emerging again and deciding which parts of our ordinary sense of self we want to keep carrying.

Inspired by Deborah Eden Tull's beautiful book Luminous Darkness, here are some reflections on the beauty of this darkest day of the year (in the Northern Hemisphere). Happy holidays. :)