Podcasts about against the stream

Mikey Livid offers a talk on the Third Noble Truth: awakening is possible. He also discusses a Buddhist concept of the saying "Let Go, Let God." Enjoy!Loving Kindness Meditation Retreat July 16th-20th in Sewanee, TN: https://www.floweringlotusmeditation.org/2025-tennesee-summer-loving-kindness-retreat Wild Heart Meditation Center in a non-profit Buddhist community based in Nashville, TN. https://www.wildheartmeditationcenter.orgDONATE: If you feel moved to support WHMC financially please visit:https://www.wildheartmeditationcenter.org/donateFollow Us on Socials!Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WildHeartNashville/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wildheartnashville/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@wildheartmeditation

In this episode Rev. Mikey offers a talk and guided meditation of gratitude and sympathetic joy (mudita).Here are the phrases used for the meditation:May your happiness grow.May your happiness continue.I am rooting for you. Wild Heart Meditation Center in a non-profit Buddhist community based in Nashville, TN. https://www.wildheartmeditationcenter.orgDONATE: If you feel moved to support WHMC financially please visit:https://www.wildheartmeditationcenter.org/donateFollow Us on Socials!Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WildHeartNashville/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wildheartnashville/

In this episode Andrew Chapman discusses how use the dharma as a guideline for making challenging life decision. Enjoy !Wild Heart Meditation Center in a non-profit Buddhist community based in Nashville, TN. https://www.wildheartmeditationcenter.orgDONATE: If you feel moved to support WHMC financially please visit:https://www.wildheartmeditationcenter.org/donateFollow Us on Socials!Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WildHeartNashville/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wildheartnashville/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@wildheartmeditation

In this episode Rev. Mikey Noechel discusses chanda or wholesome desire and how it relates to the core teachings of the Buddha through topics such as: shit life syndrome, Disney World, the four noble truths, and the five hinderances. Enjoy!Wild Heart Meditation Center in a non-profit Buddhist community based in Nashville, TN. https://www.wildheartmeditationcenter.orgDONATE: If you feel moved to support WHMC financially please visit:https://www.wildheartmeditationcenter.org/donateFollow Us on Socials!Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WildHeartNashville/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wildheartnashville/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@wildheartmeditation

In this episode Rev. Mikey Noechel offers a talk and guided meditation on loving kindness and addiction recovery. The phrases he uses are: May you be at ease. May you be at peace. May you be kind and gentle with yourself. May you be filled with loving kindness.Wild Heart Meditation Center in a non-profit Buddhist community based in Nashville, TN. https://www.wildheartmeditationcenter.orgDONATE: If you feel moved to support WHMC financially please visit:https://www.wildheartmeditationcenter.org/donateFollow Us on Socials!Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WildHeartNashville/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wildheartnashville/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@wildheartmeditation 

Rev. Mikey Noechel discusses the four noble truths and how they can be supportive in addiction recovery. The sutta Mikey references can be found here: https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/sn/sn56/sn56.011.than.htmlWild Heart Meditation Center in a non-profit Buddhist community based in Nashville, TN. https://www.wildheartmeditationcenter.orgDONATE: If you feel moved to support WHMC financially please visit:Website: https://www.wildheartmeditationcenter.orgPaypal: https://whm.center/donateVenmo: https://account.venmo.com/u/wildheartnashvilleFollow Us on Socials!Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WildHeartNashville/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wildheartnashville/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@wildheartmeditation

Rev. Mikey Noechel discusses the importance of self compassion and how caring for yourself is an offering to everyone in your life. The guided meditation begins at 30:48. Enjoy!  Wild Heart Meditation Center in a non-profit Buddhist community based in Nashville, TN. https://www.wildheartmeditationcenter.org  DONATE: If you feel moved to support WHMC financially please visit:  Website: https://www.wildheartmeditationcenter.org  Paypal: https://whm.center/donate  Venmo: https://account.venmo.com/u/wildheartnashville  Follow Us on Socials!  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WildHeartNashville/  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wildheartnashville/  TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@wildheartmeditation 

In this episode guest facilitator Justin Otto gives a talk on anatta, or selflessness. Justin is the founder of Gulf Coast Dharma (https://gulfcoastdharma.org) in Pensacola, FL and is the host of the Dharma Junkie Podcast. Enjoy! Wild Heart Meditation Centerin a non-profit Buddhist community based in Nashville, TN. https://www.wildheartmeditationcenter.org DONATE:If you feel moved to support WHMC financially please visit: Website:https://www.wildheartmeditationcenter.org Paypal:https://whm.center/donate Venmo:https://account.venmo.com/u/wildheartnashville Follow Us on Socials! Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/WildHeartNashville/ Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/wildheartnashville/ TikTok:https://www.tiktok.com/@wildheartmeditation

On the first day of the WHMC Interdependence Weekend Retreat, Andrew offers instructions on mindfulness of breathing. Enjoy!

Flowering Lotus Meditation will be hosting our Interdependence Day Compassion Meditation Retreat on July 6-9, 2023 in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi. In this episode, Beth Herzig from Flowering Lotus Meditation speaks with Rev. Mikey Noechel and Andrew Chapman about the upcoming retreat.Listen to find out:What's a compassion meditation retreat? How do we face life's suffering and pain? What is the point in experiencing pain? What's going on with Buddhism in the Southeast? This episode was sound engineered by Flowering Lotus Meditation Program Director, Justin Otto, check out his podcast: Dharma Junkie. Interdependence Day Weekend Retreat:A Compassion Meditation Retreatwith Andrew Chapman & Rev. Mikey Noechel July 6th - 9th, 2023To learn more & sign up, please visit:https://www.floweringlotusmeditation.org/interdependencedayweekend   

This is a continuation of a series of talks on the topic of "The 3 Marks of Existence". These are the essence of the Buddha's teachings: impermanence, unsatisfactoriness, and not-self. Andrew kicks it off by talking about how we can notice impermanence on every scale of our lives: macro (birth, aging, illness, and death), mezzo (changing events and experiences in our lives), and micro (moment to moment changes in our sensory experience and mind). In particular, Andrew highlights how the Buddha teaches that sitting with the micro level of our experience helps us to acclimate to impermanence in a more internalized way. How meditation truly teaches us peace and equanimity with change. Enjoy!

In this episode WHMC facilitator Roy Wyman takes a deep dive into Viparinama Dukkha. He discusses how practicing with the understanding that all pleasant things are subject to change, can be a powerful vehicle for insight. Can we be willing to acknowledge that clinging to pleasant experiences and things will not bring lasting happiness? 

This is the second talk in a month of practice on compassion. Andrew discusses Self-Compassion and the 4 aspects of: Understanding, Empathy, Equanimity, and Compassion. Enjoy!

This is the last talk in a month of practice focused on Metta - or lovingkindness. Andrew shares two practices: 1. Metta for a benefactor, and then 2. Viewing all experiences through lovingkindness. Enjoy!

On the second evening of the five day Wild Heart Meditation Center residential retreat, Andrew talks about how we've been set up for survival rather than happiness. He talks about the Buddha's teaching on the second noble truth, how craving and clinging cause suffering, and how we often, unknowingly, exchange short term pleasure for long term unhappiness in our lives... and how we can break that cycle through mindfulness. enjoy!

On the second morning of the Peace Within the Wild Heart Retreat, Marika Maypop offers an overview and meditation instructions on the 2nd foundation of mindfulness, "Mindfulness of Feeling Tone". By exploring our relationship with the pleasant, unpleasant, and neutral feelings of each moment, we can see how the mind's reactivity builds up, causing clinging and aversion. The link between feeling tone and reactivity is where the Buddha instructs us to practice letting go, and experiencing the liberation that comes from stepping out of reactive patterns in the mind. Enjoy!

In this episode, Marika Maypop offers further instructions on developing "Mindfulness of Breathing". This is often the most foundational practice and is essential for developing tranquility which is a support for the liberating insight that comes through meditation. Enjoy!

On the first morning of the most recent Wild Heart Retreat, Andrew offers a brief talk and meditation instructions on the first foundation of mindfulness- mindfulness of the breath and body. Enjoy!

Andrew finishes a series on the core teachings of the Buddha, "The Four Noble Truths & The Eightfold Path", with a talk on "Wise Concentration". Cultivating Samadhi, or calmness & tranquility, is an essential characteristic of developing concentration in our meditation practice. A calm mind leads to a more equanimous awareness and a more refined observations of our experience, which leads to liberating insight.

In this episode, Andrew continues his series of talks on the Buddha's Eightfold Path, discussing the topic of "Wise Mindfulness". Mindfulness is such a popular focus of the Buddha's teaching, but what did he actually say about it 2600 years ago? We hope you enjoy!

Wild Heart has an upcoming Meditation Retreat in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi September 1st - 5th. Link herehttps://www.floweringlotusmeditation.org/peacewithinthewildheartAndrew & Mikey take questions from the audience on a Wednesday night Dharma & Discussion group. The questions range from topics about developing wisdom, transmuting anger into compassion, how to work with trauma & depression, and more. Enjoy!

Andrew continues his series of talks on the eightfold path with Wise Effort. He starts off by asking the questions: "why don't we do the things that we want to do?". What makes us stop doing, or never start doing, the things in live that we truly value or find happiness in? The Buddha offers as a reflection, the teachings on wise effort. Enjoy!

This talk was recorded at Wild Heart's Memorial Day Loving Kindness Retreat on May 27th-30th at Heartwood Refuge in Hendersonville, NC. Mikey Noechel offers a Dharma talk on developing a kind and compassionate view of the world through loving kindness (metta.) 

In this short talk from the Memorial Day LovingKindness Retreat Andrew offers a reflection on the gentle effort that it takes to be with the present experience with an open heart. He also offers a short LovingKindness meditation at the end of the talk. Enjoy!

Andrew offers the morning instructions on the first day of the WHMC Loving Kindness Memorial Day Retreat, Metta for a Benefactor. The cultivation of Metta, or lovingkindness, is said to be a sublime state that can be cultivated to alleviate suffering and view the world through kind eyes. In this talk, Andrew offers instructions for how to begin Metta practice, by developing this quality of kindness towards someone that is easy to evoke this attitude towards--a benefactor.

Papanca is a Pali Sanskrit word that means "metal proliferation" or is literally translated as "spreading out". What does the Buddha say about what to do when the mind is tripping? And when we're caught in the grip of our thoughts, where does it usually go? Andrew and Mikey talk about the ins and outs of papanca and the ways that mindfulness helps us get out of the rabbit hole. Enjoy!

In this episode, Andrew talks about one of the Brahmaviharas, appreciative joy and gratitude. Practicing gratitude can widen our perspective when going through a hard time and help us practice non-attachment during times of pleasure and joy. Enjoy!

How do the words I speak effect the peace and happiness in my life?Communication is so much of what we do! Whether it's with others, or even just the voice in our head, the way we talk to ourselves and others can either be a source of peacefulness or great pain in our lives. The Buddha includes Wise Speech in 3 individual factors of the eightfold path (speech, action, and mindfulness) and he offers helpful guidelines to radically transform the ways we communicate in service of living in a more peaceful way. Enjoy!

In this episode Andrew talks about the second factor of the Buddha's Noble Eightfold Path: "Wise Intention". Andrew discusses the link between Wise View and Wise Intention (the first two "wisdom factors" of the eightfold path), the 3 ways that the Buddha taught about intention in the suttas, and then finally he discusses the 3 wise intentions: renunciation, goodwill, and harmlessness. Renunciation combats craving and greed, Goodwill combats aversion or illwill, and Harmlessness combats cruelty or harm. We hope you enjoy!

Andrew speaks on the topic of Wise View. He talks about mindfulness being not just for the sole purpose of being present, but as a practice that radically changes the way that we see and relate to the world. In the Buddha's teachings, wisdom is cultivated by seeing our human experience through the lens of the 3 marks of existence: the impermanent, impersonal and imperfect nature of the world.

In this episode, Andrew discusses the Noble Eightfold Path. The Eightfold Path serves as a guiding structure that helps to bring forth our innate wisdom and compassion, rather than a set of rigid rules and requirements to follow heedlessly. Similar to how one might excavate an ancient ruin to get to the beauty underneath, the Eightfold Path are our tools for doing the deep digging required for peace and freedom. Andrew also provides a brief overview of the Eightfold Path factors. Enjoy!

Everyone's welcome here. You don't have to be a Buddhist to participate here at Against The Stream. I very intentionally haven't secularized Buddhism, and kind of pretended like it's not a religion, like a lot of meditation centers and Buddhist communities do. We kind of pretend like Buddhism, isn't a religion and that we're just doing mindfulness. So is it a religion? Is it religion to you? Is it your religion? Are you a Buddhist, or are you practicing Buddhism? I don't think it's very important to take on the label of being a Buddhist. And so it's a sort of an interesting question. I don't think it's important, but I do think it's interesting to just watch your own mind around. Can I have this label on me? At the end of the day - if you're practicing mindfulness, you're practicing Buddhism.

In this episode, Andrew speaks on the topic of Awakening. Far from the ever-elusive state of bliss that we often think of when we hear the words awakening, enlightenment or nirvana, the Buddha was very clear that awakening is an on-going process of stepping out of reactivity through engaging with the eightfold path. Awakening isn't a special or privileged state that is only achieved by superior meditators, it is instead the cooling down of reactivity that is the natural result of cultivating a simple and pragmatic path of ethical living, mindfulness, and wisdom.

In this episode, WH Facilitator, Don Givens, talks about the Three Refuges. These are core principles that we turn to for stability and support as we navigate the instability of trudging through life on life's terms. In a path that teaches of impermanence and the inconstancy of life, where can we find a solid ground to stand? The Buddha: representing our greatest potential for a wise and compassionate heart, The Dharma: representing the principles and practices outlined in the Noble Eightfold Path, and The Sangha: representing the community of wise friendship and spiritual companions on the path.

Andrew continues the series on the Buddha's core teachings, the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path, speaking on the topic of the Second Noble Truth: Craving & Clinging. Although life is unpredictable and largely outside of the realm of our control, we can learn to meet these ups and downs with less reactivity, with less craving and clinging. When we become reactive, we make life harder than it has to be. Mindfulness helps us to step back and observe when reactivity arises, without taking the bait. I hope you enjoy!

Andrew kicks off a series of talks on the 4 noble truths and the eightfold path, speaking on the first noble truth: dukkha!The first truth has often been misinterpreted as the Buddha making a claim that "life is suffering", but rather than a claim to be believed, the Buddha is offering a task to be put into practice centered around embracing the difficulty and vulnerability of our lives rather than running from it. His teaching captures the essence of the reality that when we resist pain, we suffer further, when we embrace pain, we experience freedom from the unnecessary layer of suffering that comes from reactivity and avoidance. 

Today we are speaking with ….Noah Levine. NOAH LEVINE is the author of Dharma Punx, Against The Stream, The Heart of the Revolution and Refuge Recovery, is a Buddhist teacher, author and counselor. He has created a Buddhist approach to addiction recovery called Refuge Recovery. He is also the founding teacher of Against the Stream Buddhist Meditation Society, with a meditation center in Venice beach CA. He teaches meditation classes, workshops and retreats internationally. Noah holds a Masters degree in counseling psychology and lives in Los Angeles.https://www.againstthestream.com/ Help us Keep Tom going – please donate a few bucks/quid/sheckels here at Paypal: Gilwriter@hotmail.co.uk See us every Friday at zoom https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88215498348  Zoom ID 882 1549 348 password Tom Our website is at www.HTWTW.comJoin our Facebook Page ‘Here's Tom with the weather' at https://www.facebook.com/groups/314088509589654 To see past episodes, join the ‘Here's Tom with the Weather' Youtube Channel here: https://youtube.com/channel/UCdW7K07ZZUPZZ-t0s7XmURQ 

In this episode, Andrew finishes off a series of talks on the Four Foundations of Mindfulness, speaking on the Fourth Foundation: Mindfulness of Dhammas. He highlights the aspect of this teaching called the "Seven Awakening Factors". What do we need to cultivate in our search for more freedom in our lives? The Buddha says these seven qualities are key: mindfulness, investigation, energy, joy, tranquility, and concentration.

Andrew continues a series of talks on the Four Foundations of Mindfulness. This is a 2600 year old teaching from the Satipatthana Sutta, which includes a comprehensive set of instructions on how to establish mindfulness in order to cultivate the liberating insights set out in the Buddha's teachings. This episode covers Mindfulness of the Mind, which look particularly at the three poisons of greed, hatred and delusion.

The second talk in a series on the Four Foundations of Mindfulness. In this episode, Andrew discusses the Second Foundation of Mindfulness - Mindfulness of Feeling Tone. The Buddha instructs us to notice the reactivity that often arises around pleasant, unpleasant, and neutral feelings as a method of unhooking from the impulses of reactivity that often lead to suffering. 

Andrew kicks off a series of talks given on the Four Foundations of Mindfulness, beginning with mindfulness of body. Establishing mindfulness of the body serves as the foundation for stilling the mind and assisting in the development of mental clarity that brings about transformative insight into the three characteristics: the impersonal, impermanent, and unreliable nature of our human experience.

Andrew concludes a series of talks on the 10 Paramis (only 5 are listed on the podcast), which are the spiritual principles that serve as the foundation for the Buddha's teaching. In this talk, Andrew speaks on the topic of "equanimity", which means even-mindedness, balance, and non-reactivity. Equanimity is all about finding peace amidst the worldly winds of life's 10,000 joys and sorrows.

Andrew continues a series of talks on the Paramis - The 10 Perfections of the Heart, speaking on the topic of Truthfulness. Enjoy!

In this episode, Andrew continues the series of talks on the 10 Paramis, discussing the topic of "Effort & Energy". It's said that the Buddha taught about effort more than any other topic in his Noble Eightfold Path, which is likely because of how essential it is for the development of wisdom and compassion, as well as the nuance of how to cultivate energy without becoming rigid or falling into the other extreme of lethargy or complacency. 

In this episode, Andrew continues a series of talks on the 10 Paramis (The 10 Perfections), discussing the topic of "Renunciation". Enjoy!

Andrew begins a series of talks on the 10 Paramis, starting with generosity. Generosity was often the very first teaching that the Buddha would give to folks interested in starting their spiritual search. In this talk, we discuss why the focus of service and generous giving is so essential to the Buddhist path.

On the final night of the Spring Retreat, Andrew & Mikey discuss the Noble Eightfold Path. Enjoy!

On the fifth night of the Spring Retreat, Mikey offers a talk on the "Flower Sermon". He highlights the importance of the simple, experiential wisdom, that comes from being fully attentive to the here and now. 

On the 4th evening of the WH Spring Retreat, Andrew offers a talk on the Five Hindrances. These five visiting tendencies that obscure the luminous mind - craving, aversion, lethargy, restlessness, and doubt. Enjoy!

On the third night of the recent Wild Heart residential retreat, Mikey tells the story of Angulimala. A story of pain, suffering, and confusion, as well as, a story of redemption, forgiveness and great compassion. Enjoy!