Podcasts about buddhist

 We're ending this year with a deep reflection: a year in review for wild awake hearts. You know it's the end of the year when there you are, just trying to drink your tea in peace, and your feed is full of “Optimize Your 2026,” “New Year, New You,” and shit like that. Meanwhile, the Buddha is somewhere looking at all these color-coded habit trackers like, “Beloveds… you know you're still going to die, right?” So let's try something different. Something with a Buddhist flair. Something that lets you walk into the new year not as a “better project,” but as a freer, truer, more alive version of you.You will learn:// Why conventional year-end reviews often turn into spiritualized self-attack, and what to do instead.// How to use Buddhist teachings like impermanence and not-self to soften, not harden, your reflection.// A simple way to honor both heartbreak and beauty, inspired by Mark Nepo's “Adrift.”// How to bring a social justice lens into your inner work so your practice isn't separated from the world's pain.// Questions that reveal where we abandoned ourselves this year, and where we showed up bravely.// How to recognize your own moments of aliveness and decolonize the dreams you're chasing.// Why remembering lineage is a rebellious act // Ways to honor the earth as a living relative in your year-end reflection, not just a backdrop.// How to set intentions that feel like prayers rather than punishments, and one simple ritual you can do today.Resources:// Episode 154: Off the Cushion - Activism + Spirituality // Episode 174: Decolonize Your Mind - A Story of My Mother and Me// Episode 184: The Power of Intention, Ritual, and Ceremony: Rediscovering the Sacred in Everyday Life// Episode 260: Wild + Woven – Why We Need Both Nature and People// Episode 286: The Concept of No-Self (and Greater Intimacy) – Off the Cushion Part 7// If you're new to the squad, grab the Rebel Buddhist Toolkit I created at RebelBuddhist.com. It has all you need to start creating a life of more freedom, adventure, and purpose. You'll also get access to the Rebel Buddhist private group, and tune in every Wednesday as I go live with new inspiration and topics.// Want something more self-paced with access to weekly group support and getting coached by yours truly? Check out Freedom School – the community for ALL things related to freedom, inside and out. We dive into taking wisdom and applying it to our daily lives, with different topics every month. Learn more at JoinFreedomSchool.com. I can't wait to see you there!// Have you benefited from even one episode of the Rebel Buddhist Podcast? I'd love it if you could leave a 5-star review on iTunes by clicking here  or on Spotify by clicking here.

What does it really mean to speak of "socialism with Chinese characteristics"? Is it simply a matter of policy and political economy, or does it require grappling with thousands of years of civilizational history, philosophy, and culture? In this episode, Breht is joined by Zhao, the mind behind Goods for the People and author of Chinese Characteristics of Socialism: Civilizational Factors in CPC Governance to explore a bold and provocative argument: that while class struggle and material conditions must remain primary, China's socialist path cannot be understood without its deep Confucian, Daoist, and Buddhist inheritance. From Yu the Great's flood control and the origins of infrastructural legitimacy, to the Mandate of Heaven, Da Tong, and the tributary system, we examine how ancient ideas of harmony, moral legitimacy, and collective responsibility continue to shape contemporary Chinese governance and foreign policy. This is a wide-ranging conversation for Marxists, socialists, and anti-imperialists interested in China beyond caricature, reductionism, and Cold War myths -- one that asks how history, philosophy, and material struggle converge in the making of a socialist future, and what China's trajectory might mean for the global path toward communism. Other episodes mentioned in this episode: Check out our 7 hour episode on the last 250 years of Chinese History HERE Check out our episode on Italy's Years of Lead HERE Check out our episode on the German Revolution HERE Check out our episode on the Spanish Civil War HERE   ---------------------------------------------------- Support Rev Left and get access to bonus episodes: www.patreon.com/revleftradio Make a one-time donation to Rev Left at BuyMeACoffee.com/revleftradio Follow, Subscribe, & Learn more about Rev Left Radio https://revleftradio.com/

In this episode, I celebrate the 10-year anniversary of the Secular Buddhism podcast by announcing a new AI-powered website, EightfoldPath.com, which serves as a modern application of the Buddhist concept of skillful means. Skillful means, or upaya, is the idea that teachings should adapt to meet individuals where they are, using whatever tools or methods are most effective for reducing suffering and cultivating wisdom. Throughout history, technologies like writing, the printing press, and the internet have served as skillful means for transmitting Buddhist teachings, and now artificial intelligence is the latest iteration. The new website features "Noah AI," a tool trained on all my past content, acting as a conversational thinking partner to make these ancient insights more accessible and interactive for modern learners, emphasizing that the technology is simply a vehicle for the teachings, not the teachings themselves. Learn more at eightfoldpath.comThe podcast celebrates its 10-year anniversary, marking a decade of making Buddhist teachings accessible through modern technology.The concept of "skillful means" (upaya) is central, emphasizing the adaptation of teaching methods to individual needs and situations, a principle applied throughout Buddhist history with the advent of writing, printing, and digital media.A new AI-powered website, EightfoldPath.com, has been launched, featuring "Noah AI," a tool trained on all of Noah Rasheta's content to serve as a conversational thinking partner for exploring Buddhist teachings.The website offers free access to transcribed podcast episodes, courses, and the AI tool, with additional benefits for supporters, aiming to make wisdom and compassion more accessible.The shift to EightfoldPath.com signifies a broader scope beyond "secular Buddhism," focusing on the universal "Eightfold Path" as the core of the teachings, regardless of labels. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Spencer's comes up with a plan to relaunch the Sizzler chain of restaurants as Steakler that might have more merit than you think, before he stumbles on the realization that thoughts are just "some guy being like, look at this!" which is probably the most accurate description of Buddhist philosophy you'll hear today. AI VTubers are probably good, but Pluribus hive mind collectives are probably bad? Help us get to the bottom of this, and help us help you. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This talk delves into the concept of 'Sangha' and its deep connections with truth and relationships. Sanghadhara shares personal reflections and experiences, emphasising the importance of community and spiritual friendships in understanding and embodying Dharma. He offers a deep dive into how interconnectedness is fundamental to understanding the nature of reality. Excerpted from the talk entitled We Are Our Relationships | Sangha As Truth given at Manchester Buddhist Centre, 2023. *** Help us keep FBA Podcasts free for everyone! Donate now: https://freebuddhistaudio.com/donate Subscribe to our Dharmabytes podcast: Bite-sized clips - Buddhist inspiration three times a week. Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/dharmabytes-from-free-buddhist-audio/id416832097 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4UHPDj01UH6ptj8FObwBfB

In a moment when the world feels uncertain, Jack sits down with Anne Lamott and Tami Simon for an intimate, deeply human conversation about stories of the heart—how they soften us, unite us, and remind us of our own beauty.Today's podcast is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/heartwisdom and get on your way to being your best self.Jack's new book is out now!: All in This Together: Stories and Teachings for Loving Each Other and Our World“What makes me happy in working with people is to be able to remind them of how beautiful they are.” –Jack Kornfield.In this episode, Jack, Anne, and Tami mindfully explore:Writing tips, wild stories, and inspiration between Jack, Anne, and TamiThe power of taking ‘writers walks'Protest, aging, Jesus, Buddha, and vulnerable storiesAnne Lamott's fan-girl letter to Jack from years agoReminding you of your own beautyJack's story of having to bow his ego at the monasteryHow to hold a generous vision in dark timesUncovering the story of the heartRam Dass and learning to love everyoneDoing the work and prayer to become one of ‘all in this together'Living from the heart caveThis conversation originally took place in Nov 2025 for SoundsTrue's celebration of Jack's All In This Together book release. Stay up to date with Jack's upcoming livestreams and events here. “The time is so ripe for us to look out with a new pair of glasses from the heart instead of from our fear, to go into what Ram Dass called the heart cave.” –Anne LamottAbout Jack Kornfield:Jack Kornfield trained as a Buddhist monk in the monasteries of Thailand, India, and Burma, studying as a monk under the Buddhist master Ven. Ajahn Chah, as well as the Ven. Mahasi Sayadaw. He has taught meditation internationally since 1974 and is one of the key teachers to introduce Buddhist mindfulness practice to the West. Jack co-founded the Insight Meditation Society in Barre, Massachusetts, with fellow meditation teachers Sharon Salzberg and Joseph Goldstein and the Spirit Rock Center in Woodacre, California. His books have been translated into 20 languages and sold more than a million copies.Jack is currently offering a wonderful array of transformational online courses diving into crucial topics like Mindfulness Meditation Fundamentals, Walking the Eightfold Path, Opening the Heart of Forgiveness, Living Beautifully, Transforming Your Life Through Powerful Stories, and so much more. Sign up for an All Access Pass to explore Jack's entire course library. If you would like a year's worth of online meetups with Jack and fellow community, join The Year of Awakening: A Monthly Journey with Jack Kornfield.Stay up to date with Jack and his stream of fresh dharma offerings by visiting JackKornfield.com and signing up for his email teachings.“Right now we need stories that ask, even though we are going through divisiveness, climate change and A.I.—what's the story of the heart, what's the story of human beings going through times of tremendous change and then remembering what really matters?” –Jack KornfieldSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Andrew talks about the Buddha's 3rd Noble Truth - Awakening is Possible! 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: https://www.wildheartmeditationcenter.org/donate Follow Us on Socials! Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WildHeartNashville/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wildheartnashville/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@wildheartmeditation

Subscribe to hear the latest episode of Global Treasures, which covers the Buddhist Ruins of Takht-i-Bahi and Neighboring City Remains at Sahr-i-Bahlol. Abigail covers the history and travel tips for visiting this UNESCO world heritage site, added to the list in 1980. Support our Sponsors and Affiliates at no extra cost to you and help make planning your trip easier: Hardshell Luggage: https://amzn.to/3FHDWZ0  VRBO: https://vrbo.tpk.mx/1x7Nh22o   AirHelp (Helps you get refunds for cancelled or delayed flights): https://airhelp.tp.st/jfs3ZFOO  Barvita (Code ABIGAILVACCA gets you 15% off your first order): https://barvita.co/?ref=ABIGAILVACCA Follow Global Treasures on Social Media and check out my blog: Blog: Globaltreasurestravel.com  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?tid=100093258132336 Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@globaltreasurespodcast

Suryagupta explores how war, destruction and conflict are on the increase in the world, as are conflicted and destructive individual lives. How do we live in a way that brings about a less conflicted world and a more creative, integrated way of being? Excerpted from the talk entitled On War given at London Buddhist Centre, 2016. *** Help us keep FBA Podcasts free for everyone! Donate now: https://freebuddhistaudio.com/donate Subscribe to our Dharmabytes podcast: Bite-sized clips - Buddhist inspiration three times a week. Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/dharmabytes-from-free-buddhist-audio/id416832097 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4UHPDj01UH6ptj8FObwBfB

Low resource settings require much innovation and streamlining resources to meet set goals. With healthcare becoming more commercial and profit driven, missional healthcare in low resource settings faces many challenges. Sustainability is a big question with people finance , and equipment scarce and hard to come by. Missional models of healthcare often run into hurdles of sustainability, longevity and relevance even as healthcare slowly turns into business. In this setting of multifactorial challenges and increasing compliances how can missional healthcare be relevant and sustainable? Many saints of God have committed their lives to fulfil this great commission in some of the most underserved and unreached areas of the world. With the birth of Emmanuel Hospital Association (EHA) a different model of missional healthcare emerged in India. Over the last 55 years of its existence, EHA has shown that through all the challenges, this may be one of the ways to sustain missional healthcare in areas of need. With increasing divide between the rich and poor, overwhelmed government systems, a ruthless insurance system, and high end corporate healthcare, it is still possible for missional healthcare to provide low cost, high quality, technologically advanced care to people in need while remaining sustainable. We bring lessons from India and our experience with Emmanuel Hospital Association over the last 3 decades.

Ajahn Brahm shares his beautiful experiences of being part of a Buddhist community. Support us on https://ko-fi.com/thebuddhistsocietyofwa BSWA teachings are available: BSWA Teachings BSWA Podcast Channel BSWA DeeperDhamma Podbean Channel BSWA YouTube  

After a heavy weekend on Earth, Ethan discusses violence and gun violence via the mass shootings at his alma mater of Brown University and the Jewish community in Sydney at Bondi Beach, along side the movie One Battle After Another and the murders of Rob Reiner and Michele Singer. Ethan contemplates the first precept (to refrain from killing) as both a personal and a political practice. He also argues that the American love of "free speech" and our widespread addiction to guns are directly at odds with each other, and as a society, we must either choose guns or speech and can't have both. How can our mindfulness practice lead us toward an actual end to violence? Can it? Or will it just be "one samsara after another?" Please support the podcast via Substack and subscribe for free or with small monthly contributions. Additional links and show notes are available there. Paid subscribers will receive occasional extras like guided meditations, extra podcast episodes and more! The Thursday Meditation Group happens each week at 8am ET on Thursdays, and a guided audio meditations are released monthly. Another bonus podcast for paid subscribers discussed a mindful take on intuition, and Ethan also offered instruction in the RAIN method for working with emotions with self-compassion. These are all available to paid subscribers. You can also subscribe to The Road Home podcast wherever you get your pods (Apple, Ethan's Website, etc). You can also subscribe to The Road Home podcast wherever you get your pods (Apple, Ethan's Website, etc). Find out about the 2026 Yearlong Buddhist Studies program at this link! Check out about upcoming live events like a New Year's Eve Intention-Setting workshop and a live talk with Ethan and Roshi Joan Halifax January 6th! A new free video course on a classic Buddhist contemplation called The Five Remembrances is available at this link. Check out all the cool offerings at our podcast sponsor Dharma Moon. Free video courses co-taught by Ethan and others, such as The Three Marks of Existence, are also available for download at Dharma Moon.

[This episode originally aired on February 21, 2023]  Is there a way to make a sane relationship with our bad deeds and our regrets, to learn from them and to move on from them?  •  it's not easy to face up to all that we've done; it's not easy to find a way between wallowing in guilt and evading responsibility  • in the Buddhist monastic traditions, there is a practice that addresses this issue •  it's assumed that over time we can't avoid causing harm, but this practice provides a way of directly facing and working with the harm we have caused  •  the starting point is remorse; we feel bad about what we have done, and we want to do something about it  •  remorse leads us to the second step: acknowledging our harmful actions, confessing them, and seeking to purify them  •  the third step is making amends, counteracting the harm we've done by doing something beneficial, which could include asking for forgiveness  •  acknowledging and working with our mistakes is so much better than just holding onto a big pool of regret  •  we can include everything, all of our experiences, to the enrichment of our journey.

Venerable Robina discusses the three poisons - attachment, aversion, and ignorance. Attachment is a junkie that only wants everything to be nice, it's this fragile child in us, that can only handle everything going nicely, and when we understand this, we will totally understand trauma. What arises when attachment doesn't get what it wants, that's called aversion, and it's the interplay of these two that is the source of the problem. Trauma is an undealt with problem. From the Buddhist view of the mind, there's not a single thing we ever experience that ever goes astray, everything stays in the mind. It goes into the memory but we bury it, at some point you can't live in denial, it's going to come up at some point. When it's an intense thing, especially violence, then you suppress it, you push it away, you don't want to look at it, so it goes in there, and that is what a trauma is. We don't have the means to deal with dramas, we don't have the analysis, we get guilty, we think it's all our fault, we push it away and we don't deal with it, we don't know how to deal with it, we haven't been taught. Our tragedy in our culture, we wait until serious things happen, until we're having a mental breakdown or panic attacks. We don't have methods for dealing with our mind, our attitude, or our interpretation of the event. The trauma is your own mind, the event is the external, we don't know how to interpret our mind, which is the response to the event, and that's the skill we have to learn! Questions about - past abuse and current relationships, the death of a best friend, terminal illness, letting go and advocacy, specific practices or teachings most useful for dealing with abuse, dissolving anger by understanding and accepting karma, trauma and grief, and how useful is it to go back into past experience and how do you think about them without wallowing? Vajrayana Institute, Sydney, 26th April 2025.

The last time Yamato was heavily involved on the continent, they were defeated militarily, and they returned to fortify their islands.  So how are things looking, now? This episode we will talk about some of what has been going on with Tang and Silla, but also touch on the Mishihase, the Hayato, the people of Tamna and Tanegashima, and more! For more information and references, check out:  https://sengokudaimyo.com/podcast/episode-140   Rough Transcript   Welcome to Sengoku Daimyo's Chronicles of Japan.  My name is Joshua and this is episode 140: Improving Diplomatic Ties Garyang Jyeongsan and Gim Hongsye looked out from the deck of their ship, tossing and turning in the sea.  The waves were high, and the winds lashed at the ship, which rocked uncomfortably beneath their feet.  Ocean spray struck them from below while rain pelted from above. Through the torrential and unstable conditions, they looked out for their sister ship.  It was their job to escort them, but in these rough seas, bobbing up and down, they were at the mercy of the elements.  One minute they could see them, and then next it was nothing but a wall of water.  Each time they caught a glimpse the other ship seemed further and further away.  They tried calling out, but it was no use—even if they could normally have raised them, the fierce winds simply carried their voices out into the watery void.  Eventually, they lost sight of them altogether. When the winds died down and the seas settled, they looked for their companions, but they saw nothing, not even hints of wreckage on the ocean.  They could only hope that their fellow pilots knew where they were going.  As long as they could still sail, they should be able to make it to land—either to the islands  to which they were headed, or back to the safety of the peninsula. And so the escort ship continued on, even without a formal envoy to escort.  They would hope for the best, or else they would explain what would happen,  and hope that the Yamato court would understand. The seas were anything but predictable, and diplomacy was certainly not for the faint of heart.   We are going through the period of the reign of Ohoama, aka Temmu Tennou.  It started in 672, with the death of his brother, Naka no Oe, remembered as the sovereign Tenji Tenno, when Temmu took the throne from his nephew, Ohotomo, aka Kobun Tenno, in what would become known as the Jinshin no Ran.  From that point, Ohoama continued the work of his brother in creating a government based on a continental model of laws and punishments—the Ritsuryo system.  He accomplished this with assistance from his wife, Uno, and other members of the royal family—his own sons, but also nephews and other princes of the time.  And so far most of our focus has been on the local goings on within the archipelago. However, there was still plenty going on in the rest of the world, and though Yamato's focus may have been on more local affairs, it was still engaged with the rest of the world—or at least with the polities of the Korean Peninsula and the Tang Dynasty.  This episode we are going to look at Yamato's foreign relations, and how they were changing, especially as things changed on the continent. Up to this point, much of what had been happening in Yamato had been heavily influenced by the mainland in one way or another.  And to begin our discussion, we really should backtrack a bit—all the way to the Battle of Baekgang in 663, which we discussed in Episode 124.  That defeat would lead to the fall of Baekje, at the hands of the Silla-Tang alliance.  The loss of their ally on the peninsula sent Yamato into a flurry of defensive activity.  They erected fortresses on Tsushima, Kyushu, and along the Seto Inland Sea.  They also moved the capital up to Ohotsu, a more easily defended point on the shores of Lake Biwa, and likewise reinforced various strategic points in the Home Provinces as well.  These fortresses were built in the style and under the direction of many of the Baekje refugees now resettled in Yamato. For years, the archipelago braced for an invasion by the Silla-Tang alliance.  After all, with all that Yamato had done to support Baekje, it only made sense, from their perspective, for Silla and Tang to next come after them.  Sure, there was still Goguryeo, but with the death of Yeon Gaesomun, Goguryeo would not last that long.  With a unified peninsula, then why wouldn't they next look to the archipelago? And yet, the attack never came.  While Yamato was building up its defenses, it seems that the alliance between Silla and Tang was not quite as strong as their victories on the battlefield may have made it seem.  This is hardly surprising—the Tang and Silla were hardly operating on the same scale.  That said, the Tang's immense size, while bringing it great resources, also meant that it had an extremely large border to defend.  They often utilized alliances with other states to achieve their ends.  In fact, it seems fairly common for the Tang to seek alliances with states just beyond their borders against those states that were directly on their borders.  In other words, they would effectively create a pincer maneuver by befriending the enemy of their enemy.  Of course.  Once they had defeated said enemy well, wouldn't you know it, their former ally was now their newest bordering state. In the case of the Silla-Tang alliance, it appears that at the start of the alliance, back in the days of Tang Taizong, the agreement, at least from Silla's perspective, was that they would help each other against Goguryeo and Baekje, and then the Tang dynasty would leave the Korean peninsula to Silla.  However, things didn't go quite that smoothly.  The fighting against Goguryeo and Baekje can be traced back to the 640s, but Tang Taizong passed away in 649, leaving the throne to his heir, Tang Gaozong.  The Tang forces eventually helped Silla to take Baekje after the battle of Baekgang River in 663, and then Goguryeo fell in 668, but the Tang forces didn't leave the peninsula.  They remained in the former territories of Baekje and in Goguryeo, despite any former agreements.  Ostensibly they were no doubt pointing to the continuing revolts and rebellions in both regions.  While neither kingdom would fully reassert itself, it didn't mean that there weren't those who were trying.  In fact, the first revolt in Goguryeo was in 669.  There was also a revolt each year until 673.  The last one had some staying power, as the Goguryeo rebels continued to hold out for about four years. It is probably worth reminding ourselves that the Tang dynasty, during this time, had reached out on several occasions to Yamato, sending diplomatic missions, as had Silla.  While the Yamato court may have been preparing for a Tang invasion, the Tang perspective seems different.  They were preoccupied with the various revolts going on, and they had other problems.  On their western border, they were having to contend with the kingdom of Tibet, for example.  The Tibetan kingdom had a powerful influence on the southern route around the Taklamakan desert, which abuts the Tibetan plateau.   The Tang court would have had to divert resources to defend their holdings in the western regions, and it is unlikely that they had any immediate designs on the archipelago, which I suspect was considered something of a backwater to them, at the time.  In fact, Yamato would have been much more useful to the Tang as an ally to help maintain some pressure against Silla, with whom their relationship, no longer directed at a common enemy, was becoming somewhat tense. In fact, just before Ohoama came to the throne, several events had occurred that would affect the Silla-Tang alliance. The first event is more indirect—in 670, the Tibetan kingdom attacked the Tang empire.  The fighting was intense, and required serious resources from both sides.  Eventually the Tibetan forces were victorious, but not without a heavy toll on the Tibetan kingdom, which some attribute to the latter's eventual demise.  Their pyrrhic victory, however, was a defeat for the Tang, who also lost troops and resources in the fighting.  Then, in 671, the Tang empire would suffer another loss as Silla would drive the Tang forces out of the territory of the former kingdom of Baekje. With the Baekje territory under their control, it appears that Silla was also working to encourage some of rebellions in Goguryeo.  This more than irked the Tang court, currently under the formal control of Tang Gaozong and the informal—but quite considerable—control of his wife, Wu Zetian, who some claim was the one actually calling most of the shots in the court at this point in time.  Silla encouragement of restoration efforts in Goguryeo reached the Tang court in 674, in and in 675 we see that the Tang forces were sent to take back their foothold in the former Baekje territory.  Tang defeated Silla at Gyeonggi, and Silla's king, Munmu, sent a tribute mission to the Tang court, apologizing for their past behavior. However, the Tang control could not be maintained, as they had to once again withdraw most of their troops from the peninsula to send them against the Tibetan kingdom once more.  As soon as they did so, Silla once again renewed their attacks on Tang forces on the peninsula.  And so, a year later, in 676, the Tang forces were back.  They crossed the Yellow Sea to try and take back the Tang territories on the lower peninsula, but they were unsuccessful.  Tang forces were defeated by Silla at Maeso Fortress in modern day Yeoncheon.  After a bit more fighting, Silla ended up in control of all territory south of the Taedong River, which runs through Pyongyang, one of the ancient capitals of Goguryeo and the capital of modern North Korea.  This meant that the Tang dynasty still held much of the territory of Goguryeo under their control. With everything that was going on, perhaps that explains some of the apparently defensive measures that Yamato continued to take.  For example, the second lunar month of 675, we know that Ohoama proceeded to Takayasu castle, likely as a kind of formal inspection.  Then, in the 10th lunar month of 675 Ohoama commanded that everyone from the Princes down to the lowest rank were to provide the government with weapons.  A year later, in the 9th month of 676, the Princes and Ministers sent agents to the capital and the Home Provinces and gave out weapons to each man.  Similar edicts would be issued throughout the reign.  So in 679 the court announced that in two years time, which is to say the year 681, there would be a review of the weapons and horses belonging to the Princes of the Blood, Ministers, and any public functionaries.  And in that same year, barrier were erected for the first time on Mt. Tatsta and Mt. Afusaka, along with an outer line of fortifications at Naniwa. While some of that no doubt also helped to control internal movements, it also would have been useful to prepare for the possibility of future invasions.  And the work continued.  In 683  we see a royal command to all of the various provinces to engage in military training.  And in 684 it was decreed at that there would be an inspection in the 9th month of the following year—685—and they laid out the ceremonial rules, such as who would stand where, what the official clothing was to look like, etc.  Furthermore, there was also an edict that all civil and military officials should practice the use of arms and riding horses.  They were expected to supply their own horses, weapons, and anything they would wear into battle. If they owned horses, they would be considered cavalry soldiers, while those who did not have their own horse would be trained as infantry.  Either way, they would each receive training, and the court was determined to remove any obstacles and excuses that might arise.   Anyone who didn't comply would be punished.  Non compliance could mean refusing to train, but it could also just mean that they did not provide the proper horses or equipment, or they let their equipment fall into a state of disrepair.  Punishments could range from fines to outright flogging, should they be found guilty.  On the other hand, those who practiced well would have any punishments against them for other crimes reduced by two degrees, even if it was for a capital crime.  This only applied to previous crimes, however—if it seemed like you were trying to take advantage of this as a loophole to be able to get away with doing your own thing than the pardon itself would be considered null and void. A year later, the aforementioned inspection was carried out by Princes Miyatokoro, Hirose, Naniwa, Takeda, and Mino.  Two months later, the court issued another edict demanding that military equipment—specifically objects such as large or small horns, drums, flutes, flags, large bows, or catapults—should be stored at the government district house and not kept in private arsenals.  The "large bow" in this case may be something like a ballista, though Aston translates it to crossbow—unfortunately, it isn't exactly clear, and we don't necessarily have a plethora of extant examples to point to regarding what they meant.  Still, these seem to be focused on things that would be used by armies—especially the banners, large bows, and catapults.  The musical instruments may seem odd, though music was often an important part of Tang dynasty military maneuvers.  It was used to coordinate troops, raise morale, provide a marching rhythm, and more.  Granted, much of this feels like something more continental, and it is unclear if music was regularly used in the archipelago.  This could be more of Yamato trying to emulate the Tang dynasty rather than something that was commonplace on the archipelago.  That might also explain the reference to the Ohoyumi and the catapults, or rock throwers. All of this language having to do with military preparations could just be more of the same as far as the Sinicization of the Yamato government is concerned; attempts to further emulate what they understood of the civilized governments on the mainland—or at least their conception of those governments based on the various written works that they had imported.  Still, I think it is relevant that there was a lot of uncertainty regarding the position of various polities and the potential for conflict.  Each year could bring new changes to the political dynamic that could see military intervention make its way across the straits.  And of course, there was always the possibility that Yamato itself might decide to raise a force of its own. Throughout all of this, there was continued contact with the peninsula and other lands.  Of course, Silla and Goguryeo were both represented when Ohoama came to the throne—though only the Silla ambassador made it to the ceremony, apparently.  In the 7th lunar month of 675, Ohotomo no Muraji no Kunimaro was sent to Silla as the Chief envoy, along with Miyake no Kishi no Irishi.  They likely got a chance to witness first-hand the tensions between Silla and the Tang court.  The mission would return in the second lunar month of the following year, 676.  Eight months later, Mononobe no Muarji no Maro and Yamashiro no Atahe no Momotari were both sent.  That embassy also returned in the 2nd lunar month of the following year. Meanwhile, it wasn't just Yamato traveling to Silla—there were also envoys coming the other way.  For example, in the 2nd lunar month of 675 we are told that Silla sent Prince Chyungweon as an ambassador.  His retinue was apparently detained on Tsukushi while the actual envoy team went on to the Yamato capital.  It took them about two months to get there, and then they stayed until the 8th lunar month, so about four months in total. At the same time, in the third month, Goguryeo and Silla both sent "tribute" to Yamato.  And in the 8th month, Prince Kumaki, from Tamna, arrived at Tsukushi as well.  Tamna, as you may recall, refers to nation on the island known today as Jeju.  The late Alexander Vovin suggested that the name originated from a proto-Japonic cognate with "Tanimura", and many of the names seem to also bear out a possible Japonic influence on the island nation. Although they only somewhat recently show up in the Chronicles from our perspective, archaeological evidence suggests that they had trade with Yayoi Japan and Baekje since at least the first century.  With the fall of Baekje, and the expansion of Yamato authority to more of the archipelago, we've seen a notable uptick in the communication between Tamna and Yamato noted in the record.  A month after the arrival of Prince Kumaki in Tsukushi, aka Kyushu, it is noted that a Prince Koyo of Tamna arrived at Naniwa.  The Tamna guests would stick around for almost a year, during which time they were presented with a ship and eventually returned in the 7th lunar month of the following year, 676.   Tamna envoys, who had also shown up in 673, continued to be an annual presence at the Yamato court through the year 679, after which there is an apparent break in contact, picking back up in 684 and 685. 676 also saw a continuation of Silla representatives coming to the Yamato court, arriving in the 11th lunar month.  That means they probably passed by the Yamato envoys heading the other way.  Silla, under King Mumnu, now had complete control of the Korean peninsula south of the Taedong river.  In the same month we also see another mission from Goguryeo, but the Chronicle also points out that the Goguryeo envoys had a Silla escort, indicating the alliance between Silla and those attempting to restore Goguryeo—or at least the area of Goguryeo under Tang control.  The Tang, for their part, had pulled back their commandary to Liaodong, just west of the modern border between China and North Korea, today.  Goguryeo would not go quietly, and the people of that ancient kingdom—one of the oldest on the peninsula—would continue to rise up and assert their independence for years to come. The chronicles also record envoys from the somewhat mysterious northern Mishihase, or Sushen, thought to be people of the Okhotsk Sea culture from the Sakhalin islands.  There were 11 of them, and they came with the Silla envoys, possibly indicating their influence on the continent and through the Amur river region.  Previously, most of the contact had been through the regions of Koshi and the Emishi in modern Tohoku and Hokkaido.  This seems to be their only major envoy to the Yamato court recorded in this reign. Speaking of outside groups, in the 2nd lunar month of 677 we are told that there was an entertainment given to men of Tanegashima under the famous Tsuki tree west of Asukadera.  Many people may know Tanegashima from the role it played in the Sengoku Period, when Europeans made contact and Tanegashima became a major hub of Sengoku era firearm manufacturing.  At this point, however, it seems that it was still a largely independent island in the archipelago off the southern coast of Kyushu.  Even southern Kyushu appears to have retained some significant cultural differences at this time, with the "Hayato" people being referenced in regards to southern Kyushu—we'll talk about them in a bit as they showed up at the capital in 682.  Tanegashima is actually closer to Yakushima, another island considered to be separate, culturally, from Yamato, and could be considered the start of the chain of islands leading south to Amami Ohoshima and the other Ryukyuan islands.  That said, Tanegashima and Yakushima are much closer to the main islands of the archipelago and show considerable influence, including Yayoi and Kofun cultural artifacts, connecting them more closely to those cultures, even if Yamato initially saw them as distinct in some way. A formal Yamato envoy would head down to Tanegashima two years later, in the 11th lunar month of 679.  It was headed up by Yamato no Umakahibe no Miyatsuko no Tsura and Kami no Sukuri no Koukan.  The next reference to the mission comes in 681, when the envoys returned and presented a map of the island.  They claimed that it was in the middle of the ocean, and that rice was always abundant. With a single sowing of rice it was said that they could get two harvests.  Other products specifically mentioned were cape jasmine and bulrushes, though they then note that there were also many other products that they didn't bother to list.  This must have been considered quite the success, as the Yamato envoys were each awarded a grade of rank for their efforts.   They also appear to have returned with some of the locals, as they were entertained again in Asuka—this time on the riverbank west of Asukadera, where various kinds of music were performed for them. Tanegashima and Yakushima would be brought formally under Yamato hegemony in 702 with the creation of Tane province, but for now it was still considered separate.  This was probably just the first part of the efforts to bring them into Yamato, proper. Getting back to the Silla envoys who had arrived in 676, they appear to have remained for several months.  In the third lunar month of 677 we are told that they, along with guests of lower rank—thirteen persons all told—were invited to the capital.  Meanwhile, the escort envoys and others who had not been invited to the capital were entertained in Tsukushi and returned from there. While this was going on, weather out in the straits drove a Silla boat to the island of Chikashima.  Aboard was a Silla man accompanined by three attendants and three Buddhist priests.  We aren't told where they were going, but they were given shelter and when the Silla envoy, Kim Chyeonpyeong, returned home he left with those who had been driven ashore, as well. The following year, 678, was not a great one for the Silla envoys.  Garyang Jyeongsan and Gim Hongsye arrived at Tsukushi, but they were just the escorts.  The actual envoys had been separated by a storm at sea and never arrived.  In their place, the escort envoys were sent to the capital, probably to at least carry through with the rituals of diplomacy.  This was in the first month of the following year, 679, and given when envoys had previously arrived, it suggests to me that they waited a few months, probably to see if the envoys' ship eventually appeared and to give the court time to figure out what to do.  A month later, the Goguryeo envoys arrived, still being accompanied by Silla escorts, also arrived. Fortunately the Yamato envoys to Silla and elsewhere fared better.  That year, 679, the envoys returned successfully from Silla, Goguryeo, and Tamna.  Overall, though, I think it demonstrates that this wasn't just a pleasure cruise.  There was a very real possibility that one could get lost at sea.  At the same time, one needed people of sufficient status to be able to carry diplomatic messages and appropriately represent the court in foreign lands.  We often seen envoys later taking on greater positions of responsibility in the court, and so you didn't have to go far to find those willing to take the risk for later rewards. That same year, another tribute mission from Silla did manage to make the crossing successfully.  And in this mission we are given more details, for they brought gold, silver, iron, sacrificial cauldrons with three feet, brocade, cloth, hides, horses, dogs, mules, and camels.  And those were just the official gifts to the court.  Silla also sent distinct presents for the sovereign, the queen, and the crown prince, namely gold, silver, swords, flags, and things of that nature. This appears to demonstrate increasingly close ties between Silla and Yamato. All of that arrived in the 10th lunar month of 679, and they stayed through the 6th lunar month of 680—about 7 to 9 months all told, depending on if there were any intercalary months that year.  In addition to entertaining the Silla envoys in Tsukushi—it is not mentioned if they made it to the capital—we are also told that in the 2nd lunar month, halfway through the envoys' visit, eight labourers from Silla were sent back to their own country with gifts appropriate to their station. Here I have to pause and wonder what exactly is meant by this.  "Labourer" seems somewhat innocuous.  I suspect that their presence in Yamato may have been less than voluntary, and I wonder if these were captured prisoners of war who could have been in Yamato now for over a decade.  If so, this could have been a gesture indicating that the two sides were putting all of that nastiness with Baekje behind them, and Yamato was accepting Silla's new role on the peninsula.  Or maybe I'm reading too much into it, but it does seem to imply that Silla and Yamato were growing closer, something that Yamato would need if it wanted to have easy access, again, to the wider world. Speaking of returning people, that seems to have been something of a common thread for this year, 680, as another mission from Goguryeo saw 19 Goguryeo men also returned to their country.  These were condolence envoys who had come to mourn the death of Takara Hime—aka Saimei Tennou.  They must have arrived in the midst of all that was happening peninsula, and as such they were detained.  Their detention is somewhat interesting, when you think about it, since technically Baekje and Goguryeo—and thus Yamato—would have been on the same side against the Silla-Tang alliance.  But perhaps it was just considered too dangerous to send them home, initially, and then the Tang had taken control of their home.  It is unclear to me how much they were being held by Yamato and how much they were just men without a country for a time.  This may reflect how things on the mainland were stabilizing again, at least from Yamato's perspective.  However, as we'll discuss a bit later, it may have also been another attempt at restoring the Goguryeo kingdom by bringing back refugees, especially if they had connections with the old court.  The Goguryeo envoys—both the recent mission and those who had been detained—would remain until the 5th lunar month of 681, when they finally took their leave.  That year, there were numerous mission both from and to Silla and Goguryeo, and in the latter part of the year, Gim Chyungpyeong came once again, once more bearing gives of gold, silver, copper, iron, brocade, thin silk, deerskins, and fine cloth.  They also brought gold, silver, flags of a rosy-colored brocade and skins for the sovereign, his queen, and the crown prince. That said, the 681 envoys also brought grave news:  King Munmu of Silla was dead.  Munmu had reigned since 661, so he had overseen the conquest of Silla and Goguryeo.  His regnal name in Japanese might be read as Monmu, or even "Bunbu", referencing the blending of literary and cultural achievements seen as the pinnacle of noble attainment.  He is known as Munmu the Great for unifying the peninsula under a single ruler—though much of the Goguryeo territory was still out of reach.  Indeed he saw warfare and the betterment of his people, and it is no doubt significant that his death is recorded in the official records of the archipelago.   He was succeeded by his son, who would reign as King Sinmun, though the succession wasn't exactly smooth. We are told that Munmu, knowing his time was short, requested that his son, the Crown Prince, be named king before they attended to Munmu's own funerary arrangements, claiming that the throne should not sit vacant.  This may have been prescient, as the same year Munmu died and Sinmun ascended to the throne there was a revolt, led by none other than Sinmun's own father-in-law, Kim Heumdol.  Heumdol may, himselve, have been more of a figurehead for other political factions in the court and military.  Nonetheless, the attempted coup of 681 was quickly put down—the envoys in Yamato would likely only learn about everything after the dust had settled upon their return. The following year, 682, we see another interesting note about kings, this time in regards to the Goguryeo envoys, whom we are told were sent by the King of Goguryeo.  Ever since moving the commandery to Liaodong, the Tang empire had claimed dominion over the lands of Goguryeo north of the Taedong river.  Originally they had administered it militarily, but in 677 they crowned a local, Bojang as the "King of Joseon", using the old name for the region, and put him in charge of the Liaodong commandery.  However, he was removed in 681, and sent into exile in Sichuan, because rather than suppressing revolt, he had actually encouraged restoration attempts, inviting back Goguryeo refugees, like those who had been detained in Yamato.  Although Bojang himself was sent into exile, his descendants continued to claim sovereignty, so it may have been one of them that was making the claim to the "King of Goguryeo", possibly with Silla's blessing. Later that year, 682, we see Hayato from Ohosumi and Ata—possibly meaning Satsuma—the southernmost point of Kyushu coming to the court in 682.  They brought tribute and representatives of Ohosumi and Ata wrestled, with the Ohosumi wrestler emerging victorious.  They were entertained west of Asukadera, and various kinds of music was performed and gifts were given. They were apparently quite the sight, as Buddhist priests and laiety all came out to watch. Little is known for certain about the Hayato.  We have shields that are attributed to them, but their association may have more to do with the fact that they were employed as ceremonial guards for a time at the palace.  We do know that Southern Kyushu had various groups that were seen as culturally distinct from Yamato, although there is a lot of overlap in material culture.  We also see early reports of the Kumaso, possibly two different groups, the Kuma and So, in earlier records, and the relationship between the Kumaso and the Hayato is not clearly defined. What we do know is that southern Kyushu, for all that it shared with Yamato certain aspects of culture through the kofun period, for example, they also had their own traditions. For example, there is a particular burial tradition of underground kofun that is distinct to southern Kyushu.  A great example of this can be found at the Saitobaru Kofun cluster in Miyazaki, which contains these unique southern Kyushu style burials along with more Yamato style keyhole shaped and circular type kofun.  Miyazaki sits just north of the Ohosumi peninsula, in what was formerly the land of Hyuga, aka  Himuka.  This is also where a lot of the founding stories of the Heavenly grandchild were placed, and even today there is a shrine there to the Heavenly Rock Cave.  In other words there are a lot of connections with Southern Kyushu, and given that the Chronicles were being written in the later 7th and early 8th centuries, it is an area of intense interest when trying to understand the origins of Yamato and Japanese history. Unfortunately, nothing clearly tells us exactly how the Hayato were separate, but in the coming century they would both come under Yamato hegemony and rebel against it, time and again.  This isn't the first time they are mentioned, but it may be the first time that we see them as an actual people, in a factual entry as earlier references in the Chronicles are suspect. Continuing on with our look at diplomacy during this period, the year 683 we see a continuation of the same patterns, with nothing too out of the ordinary.  Same with most of 684 until the 12th lunar month.  It is then that we see a Silla ship arrive with Hashi no Sukune no Wohi and Shirawi no Fubito no Hozen.  They had both, previously been to the Tang empire to study, though we don't have a record of them leaving for that or any other purpose.  They are accompanied by Witsukahi no Muraji no Kobito and Tsukushi no Miyake no Muraji no Tokuko, both of whom had apparently been captured and taken by the Tang dynasty during the Baekje campaign.  Apparently they had all traveled back from the Tang empire together to Silla, who then provided them passage to Yamato. The timing of this suggests it may have had something to do with the changes going on in the Tang empire—changes that I desperately want to get into, but given that we are already a good ways into this current episode, I think I will leave it for later.  But I will note this:  Emperor Gaozong had passed away and his wife, Empress Wu Zetian, was now ruling as regent for her sons.  Wu Zetian is probably the most famous empress in all of Chinese history, and while she held de facto power as a co-regent during her husband's reign and as a regent during her sons' reigns, she would actually ascend the throne herself in 690.  Her reign as a woman during a time of heightened patriarchal tradition is particularly of note, and it leads us to wonder about the vilification that she received by the men who followed her rule.  And I really want to get into all of that but, thematically, I think it better to wait.  Those of you reading ahead in the syllabus—which is to say the Chronicles—probably know why.  So let us just leave it there and say that the Tang was going through a few things, and that may explain why students were returning back in the company of former war captives. A few months later, the Silla escort, Gim Mulyu, was sent home along with 7 people from Silla who had been washed ashore—presumably during a storm or other such event, again illustrating the dangers of taking to the ocean at this time.  Perhaps related to that theme is the entry only a month later, which merely stated that Gim Jusan of Silla returned home.  Gim Jusan was an envoy sent to Yamato in the 11th lunar month of 683.  He was entertained in Tsukushi, and we are told that he returned to his own country on the 3rd month of 684.  Now we are seeing an entry in the 4th month of 685 that this same person apparently returned home. It is possible that something got mixed up, and that the Chroniclers were dealing with a typo in the records that made it seem like this took place a year later than it did.  This was certainly an issue at this time, given all the math one had to do just to figure out what day it was.  There is also the possibility that he returned on another embassy, but just wasn't mentioned for some reason.  The last possible explanation is that he somehow got lost and it took him a year to find his way back.  Not entirely impossible back then, though I am a bit skeptical.  Among other things, why would that note have found its way into the Chronicles in Yamato?  While they were certainly using some continental sources, this seems like something they were talking about as far as him leaving the archipelago, rather than discussion of something happening elsewhere. Speaking of happening elsewhere, I'm wondering about another event that happened around this time as well.  In fact, it was while Gim Mulyu was still in the archipelago.  For some reason the Yamato court granted rank to 147 individuals from Tang, Baekje, and Goguryeo.  Interestingly, they don't mention Silla.  Furthermore, there is no real mention of any Tang envoys during this reign.  In fact, there is hardly mention of the Tang dynasty at all.  There is a mention of some 30 Tang men—captives, presumably—being sent to the Yamato court from Tsukushi.  Those men were settled in Toutoumi, so there were men of Tang in the archipelago.  But beyond that, there are only three other mentions of the Tang dynasty.  One was when the students and war captives came back.  Another was this note about giving rank to 147 individuals.  Finally there is a similar record in 686, at the very end of the reign, where it is 34 persons who were given rank.  This time it was to carpenters, diviners, physicians, students from Tang—possibly those who had just come back a year or so earlier.  So if there weren't envoys from Tang, Goguryeo, and Baekje, who were these people and why were they being granted Yamato court rank?  My assumption is that it was foreigners living in the archipelago, and being incorporated into the Yamato court system.  Still, it is interesting that after the overtures by the Tang in the previous reign we have heard virtually nothing since then.  Again, that is likely largely due to the conflicts between Tang and Silla, though now, things seem to be changing.  The conflicts have settled down, and new rulers are in place, so we'll see how things go. Speaking of which, let's finish up with the diplomatic exchanges in this reign.  I'm only hitting some of the highlights here.  First is the return from Silla, in the 5th month of 685, of Takamuku no Asomi no Maro and Tsuno no Asomi no Ushikahi.  They had traveled to Silla in 684, and they did not come back emptyhanded.  The new King of Silla presented them with gifts, including 2 horses, 3 dogs, 2 parrots, and 2 magpies.  They also brought back the novice monks Kanjou and Ryoukan.  Not bad, overall. Then, 6 months later, another tribute mission came, but this one has an interesting—if somewhat questionable—note attached to it.  It is said that the envoys Gim Jisyang and Gim Geonhun were sent to request "governance" and to bring tribute.  This certainly go the court's attention.  They didn't bring the envoys all the way to the capital, but they did send to them, in Tsukushi, Prince Kawachi, Ohotomo no Sukune no Yasumaro, Fujiwara no Asomi no Ohoshima, and Hodzumi no Asomi no Mushimaro. About three months later they send the musical performers from Kawaradera to provide entertainment during a banquet for the Silla envoy, and in payment some 5,000 bundles of rice rom the private lands attached to the queen's palace were granted to the temple in gratitude. The Silla tribute was then brought to the capital from Tsukushi.  This time it was more than 100 items, including one fine horse, one mule, two dogs, a gold container inlaid with some kind of design, gold, silver, faint brocade, silk gauze, tiger and leopard skins, and a variety of medicines.  In addition, as was now common, the envoys, Gim Jisyang and Gim Geonhun, apparently had personal gifts to give in the form of gold, silver, faint brocade, silk gauze, gold containers, screens, saddle hides, silk cloth, and more medicine.  There were also gifts specifically for the sovereign, the queen, the Crown Prince, and for the various princes of the blood. The court returned this favor with gifts to the envoys, presented at a banquet just for them, before sending them on their way. A couple of notes.  First off, it is interesting that they are entertained at Tsukushi rather than being invited to the capital, and I wonder if this was because the sovereign, Ohoama, wasn't doing so well.  This was all happening in 685 and 686, and the sovereign would pass away shortly afterwards.  So it is possible that Ohoama just was not up to entertaining visitors at this time.  Of course, the Chronicles often don't tell us exactly why a given decision was made, only that it was.  And sometimes not even that. The other thing that seems curious is the mention of a request for governance.  That almost sounds like Silla was asking to come under Yamato hegemony, which I seriously doubt.  It may be that they were asking something along the lines of an alliance, but it is also possible that the scribes recording things for Yamato heard what they wanted to hear and so wrote it down in the light most favorable to Yamato laying claim to the peninsula. Or perhaps I'm misunderstanding exactly what they were asking for.  Maybe "governance" here means something else—perhaps just some kind of better relationship. And with that, we'll leave it for now.  There is more developing in the next reign, but I think we want to wait until we get there.  There are still a lot more things to cover in this reign before we move on—we haven't even touched on the establishment of the new capital, on the various court events, not to mention some of the laws and punishments that this period is named for.  And there is the minor issue of a rebellion.  All of that will be dealt with.  And then, after that, we get to the final reign of the Chronicles: the reign of Jitou Tennou.  From there?  Who knows. It is the winter holiday season, so I hope everyone is enjoying themselves.  Next episode will be the New Year's recap, and then we should finish with this reign probably in January or early February. Until then, if you like what we are doing, please tell your friends and feel free to rate us wherever you listen to podcasts.  If you feel the need to do more, and want to help us keep this going, we have information about how you can donate on Patreon or through our KoFi site, ko-fi.com/sengokudaimyo, or find the links over at our main website,  SengokuDaimyo.com/Podcast, where we will have some more discussion on topics from this episode. Also, feel free to reach out to our Sengoku Daimyo Facebook page.  You can also email us at the.sengoku.daimyo@gmail.com.  Thank you, also, to Ellen for their work editing the podcast. And that's all for now.  Thank you again, and I'll see you next episode on Sengoku Daimyo's Chronicles of Japan.

Maitrivajri explores gender and leadership under the five aspects of Sangharakshita's teaching of the true individual. Excerpted from the talk Gender, Leadership & the True Individual given in the context of Triratna Regional Order Weekend held at the London Buddhist Centre, 2014. *** Help us keep FBA Podcasts free for everyone! Donate now: https://freebuddhistaudio.com/donate Subscribe to our Dharmabytes podcast: Bite-sized clips - Buddhist inspiration three times a week. Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/dharmabytes-from-free-buddhist-audio/id416832097 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4UHPDj01UH6ptj8FObwBfB  

Why does modern society avoid death—and what is it costing us?In this episode of DEAD Talks, host David Ferrugio speaks with Paul Koudounaris, renowned art historian and author of Memento Mori, about how different cultures around the world honor the dead, why the West struggles with grief, and why pet loss is one of the most misunderstood forms of mourning.From mummy rituals and skull festivals to Buddhist animal funerals, Paul shares how ritual—not avoidance—helps people heal. This conversation reframes death as connection, not fear.A must-listen for anyone navigating grief, loss, or curiosity about death.For more on Paul Koudounaris: https://www.instagram.com/hexenkult/If you're looking for Grief Support check out our new ⁠Grief Journey App⁠⁠www.studio.com/griefjourney⁠Support the ShowJoin the ⁠DEAD Talks Patreon⁠ for just $2 to support the mission—and get episodes early & ad-free!Sign Up For E-Mail Updates Here > ⁠Submit Your Email⁠Hats, Shirts, Hoodies + More: ⁠Shop Here⁠ ⁠“Dead Dad Club” & “Dead Mom Club”⁠ – Wear your story, honor your people.Exclusive Discounts⁠10% off Neurogum⁠ – powered by natural caffeine, L-theanine, and vitamins B6 & B12 to boost focus and energy.About DEAD Talks DEAD Talks with David Ferrugio approaches death differently. Each guest shares raw stories of grief, loss, or unique perspectives that challenge the “don't talk about death” taboo. Grief doesn't end—it evolves. After losing his father on September 11th at just 12 years old, David discovered the power of conversation. Through laughter, tears, and honest dialogue, DEAD Talks helps make it a little easier to talk about death, mourning, trauma, and the life that continues beyond it.Connect with DEAD Talks⁠YouTube⁠ | ⁠Facebook⁠ | ⁠Instagram⁠ | ⁠TikTok⁠ | ⁠www.deadtalks.net

Prayer Moment 3 of 5 in DecemberPrayer for Open Doors in the Buddhist World1. New Places - Pray for God to open doors in places that have yet to receive a Christmas message in the Buddhist world.2. Opportunities to Preach - Pray for open doors for the Word of God to be preached during this Christmas season.3. Encounters with Christ - Pray for meaningful encounters with the Savior as doors are opened and the gospel is presented.

A lot of churches look healthy on the outside: great coffee, great music, great signage, and a message that feels uplifting. But what if the very thing that makes a church “easy to attend” is the same thing keeping Christian men from growing?In this episode, we expose the seeker sensitive church model—how it became popular, what it does well, and why it becomes spiritually dangerous for mature believers. If a Sunday message is built so that an atheist, a Buddhist, and a Christian can all nod along… that's not the Gospel. That's self-help.We talk about why church is meant to be the gathering of the saints, why “Christianity light” creates shallow disciples, why outsourcing growth to small groups fails, and why the Gospel should create holy friction in the room. If you've felt stuck, stalled, or spiritually underfed… this might be the reason.The Gospel Coalition - https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/Follow Men's AllianceInstagram - https://www.instagram.com/mensalliancetribe/Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/mensalliancetribeTiktok - https://www.tiktok.com/@mensalliancetribeWebsite - https://www.mensalliancetribe.com/Explore Battlefield Coaching today and find yourself a Coach with experience overcoming a battle you are currently facing - https://battlefieldcoaching.comOrder the Book - Answer With Truth: The Ambassador's Field Manual for Leading Your Family Spiritually - https://amzn.to/3BmnuKV

Politics of Tranquility: The Material and Mundane Lives of Buddhist Nuns in Post-Mao Tibet (Cornell University Press, 2025) concerns the Tibetan Buddhist revival in China, illustrating the lives of Tibetan Buddhist nuns and exploring the political effects that arise from their nonpolitical daily engagements in the remote, mega-sized Tibetan Buddhist encampment of Yachen Gar. Yasmin Cho's book challenges two assumptions about Tibetan Buddhist communities in China. First, against the assumption that a Buddhist monastic community is best understood in terms of its esoteric qualities, Cho focuses on the material and mundane daily practices that are indispensable to the existence and persistence of such a community and shows how deeply gendered these practices are. Second, against the assumption that Tibetan politics toward the Chinese state is best understood as rebellious, incendiary, and centered upon Tibetan victimhood, the nuns demonstrate how it can be otherwise. Tibetan politics can be unassuming, calm, and self-contained and yet still have substantial political effects. As Politics of Tranquility shows, the nuns in Yachen Gar have called forth an alternative way of living and expressing themselves as Tibetans and as female monastics despite a repressive context. ------------------ Jing Li teaches Chinese language, literature, and cinema. Her research focuses on rural China, independent filmmaking, and digital media cultures. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/east-asian-studies

Politics of Tranquility: The Material and Mundane Lives of Buddhist Nuns in Post-Mao Tibet (Cornell University Press, 2025) concerns the Tibetan Buddhist revival in China, illustrating the lives of Tibetan Buddhist nuns and exploring the political effects that arise from their nonpolitical daily engagements in the remote, mega-sized Tibetan Buddhist encampment of Yachen Gar. Yasmin Cho's book challenges two assumptions about Tibetan Buddhist communities in China. First, against the assumption that a Buddhist monastic community is best understood in terms of its esoteric qualities, Cho focuses on the material and mundane daily practices that are indispensable to the existence and persistence of such a community and shows how deeply gendered these practices are. Second, against the assumption that Tibetan politics toward the Chinese state is best understood as rebellious, incendiary, and centered upon Tibetan victimhood, the nuns demonstrate how it can be otherwise. Tibetan politics can be unassuming, calm, and self-contained and yet still have substantial political effects. As Politics of Tranquility shows, the nuns in Yachen Gar have called forth an alternative way of living and expressing themselves as Tibetans and as female monastics despite a repressive context. ------------------ Jing Li teaches Chinese language, literature, and cinema. Her research focuses on rural China, independent filmmaking, and digital media cultures. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/central-asian-studies

From Restless to Rooted: Joshua Williams on Calling, Repentance, and a Faith That Endures.What happens when the map you drew for your life no longer fits the road God is actually giving you? In this continuation of our conversation with Joshua Williams, we trace a candid journey through disappointment, redirection, and the quiet practices that turn belief into a way of life. This isn't highlight-reel faith; it's the daily, hidden work of following Jesus when the feelings fade and the next step isn't obvious.In this episode you'll hear about:Calling vs. career: how God reshapes ambition into service and steadies the heart when doors close.Repentance as renewal: not shame, but the rhythm that keeps love honest and hope alive.Prayer that holds in storms: learning to pray Scripture when words run out.Community and accountability: why “just me and Jesus” isn't enough when you're tired, tempted, or unsure.Sacrament and Scripture together: how worship and the Word form a faith that lasts beyond trends.Suffering without cynicism: carrying grief to Christ and finding courage to begin again.Why listen: If you're in a season of waiting, change, or quiet rebuilding, Joshua's story offers both clarity and comfort—practical ways to keep moving with Jesus when you're short on answers but rich in questions.If this conversation encouraged you, subscribe, share it with a friend who needs steadying grace, and leave a quick review with the one practice—prayer, repentance, or community—you're committing to this week.**********What if the road to Jesus runs through a guru? We sit down with Joshua to trace his unlikely path from a Romanian “enlightenment” school to Orthodox Christianity, and we ask the questions seekers rarely say aloud: Do mystical experiences prove truth, or do they force us to ask which spirit we're listening to?Joshua describes leaving the U.S. to “throw himself into the arms of the universe,” clinging to ideas like reincarnation and religious unity while resisting the moral claims of Christ. Inside a syncretic school that blended Hindu and Buddhist concepts, he encountered a compelling teacher, apparent clairvoyance, and a vision of reality where Brahman reigns as impersonal essence. That promise of unity felt expansive—until it demanded he treat personhood, love, and moral responsibility as illusions. We contrast that with the Orthodox claim that God is personal and tri-personal: the Trinity as eternal communion, love that exists before creation, and a God who is everywhere present yet distinct from creation. Rather than absorbing us into a faceless One, God calls us by name and invites real relationship.Across the conversation, we map the turning points: irritation at the name of Jesus giving way to self-awareness, recognition of authentic Christian witness, and a rethinking of “science versus faith” that leaves shallow slogans behind. We explore discernment of spirits, why power isn't proof, and how an impersonal metaphysics drifts toward quiet nihilism. Then we look at the Orthodox vision of personhood that grounds meaning: if we're made in God's image, our capacity for love is not a cosmic trick—it's the point.If you've chased enlightenment and still long for a face behind the light, this story will meet you where you are. Listen, share with a friend who's wrestling with pantheism or syncretism, and leave a review to help others find the show. Subscribe for more conversations that take faith, reason, and experience seriously.Questions about Orthodoxy? Please check out our friends at Ghost of Byzantium Discord server: https://discord.gg/JDJDQw6tdhPlease prayerfully consider supporting Cloud of Witnesses Radio: https://www.patreon.com/c/CloudofWitnessesFind Cloud of Witnesses Radio on Instagram, XPlease leave a comment with your thoughts!

Politics of Tranquility: The Material and Mundane Lives of Buddhist Nuns in Post-Mao Tibet (Cornell University Press, 2025) concerns the Tibetan Buddhist revival in China, illustrating the lives of Tibetan Buddhist nuns and exploring the political effects that arise from their nonpolitical daily engagements in the remote, mega-sized Tibetan Buddhist encampment of Yachen Gar. Yasmin Cho's book challenges two assumptions about Tibetan Buddhist communities in China. First, against the assumption that a Buddhist monastic community is best understood in terms of its esoteric qualities, Cho focuses on the material and mundane daily practices that are indispensable to the existence and persistence of such a community and shows how deeply gendered these practices are. Second, against the assumption that Tibetan politics toward the Chinese state is best understood as rebellious, incendiary, and centered upon Tibetan victimhood, the nuns demonstrate how it can be otherwise. Tibetan politics can be unassuming, calm, and self-contained and yet still have substantial political effects. As Politics of Tranquility shows, the nuns in Yachen Gar have called forth an alternative way of living and expressing themselves as Tibetans and as female monastics despite a repressive context. ------------------ Jing Li teaches Chinese language, literature, and cinema. Her research focuses on rural China, independent filmmaking, and digital media cultures. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/anthropology

Politics of Tranquility: The Material and Mundane Lives of Buddhist Nuns in Post-Mao Tibet (Cornell University Press, 2025) concerns the Tibetan Buddhist revival in China, illustrating the lives of Tibetan Buddhist nuns and exploring the political effects that arise from their nonpolitical daily engagements in the remote, mega-sized Tibetan Buddhist encampment of Yachen Gar. Yasmin Cho's book challenges two assumptions about Tibetan Buddhist communities in China. First, against the assumption that a Buddhist monastic community is best understood in terms of its esoteric qualities, Cho focuses on the material and mundane daily practices that are indispensable to the existence and persistence of such a community and shows how deeply gendered these practices are. Second, against the assumption that Tibetan politics toward the Chinese state is best understood as rebellious, incendiary, and centered upon Tibetan victimhood, the nuns demonstrate how it can be otherwise. Tibetan politics can be unassuming, calm, and self-contained and yet still have substantial political effects. As Politics of Tranquility shows, the nuns in Yachen Gar have called forth an alternative way of living and expressing themselves as Tibetans and as female monastics despite a repressive context. ------------------ Jing Li teaches Chinese language, literature, and cinema. Her research focuses on rural China, independent filmmaking, and digital media cultures. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/chinese-studies

Politics of Tranquility: The Material and Mundane Lives of Buddhist Nuns in Post-Mao Tibet (Cornell University Press, 2025) concerns the Tibetan Buddhist revival in China, illustrating the lives of Tibetan Buddhist nuns and exploring the political effects that arise from their nonpolitical daily engagements in the remote, mega-sized Tibetan Buddhist encampment of Yachen Gar. Yasmin Cho's book challenges two assumptions about Tibetan Buddhist communities in China. First, against the assumption that a Buddhist monastic community is best understood in terms of its esoteric qualities, Cho focuses on the material and mundane daily practices that are indispensable to the existence and persistence of such a community and shows how deeply gendered these practices are. Second, against the assumption that Tibetan politics toward the Chinese state is best understood as rebellious, incendiary, and centered upon Tibetan victimhood, the nuns demonstrate how it can be otherwise. Tibetan politics can be unassuming, calm, and self-contained and yet still have substantial political effects. As Politics of Tranquility shows, the nuns in Yachen Gar have called forth an alternative way of living and expressing themselves as Tibetans and as female monastics despite a repressive context. ------------------ Jing Li teaches Chinese language, literature, and cinema. Her research focuses on rural China, independent filmmaking, and digital media cultures. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/buddhist-studies

Politics of Tranquility: The Material and Mundane Lives of Buddhist Nuns in Post-Mao Tibet (Cornell University Press, 2025) concerns the Tibetan Buddhist revival in China, illustrating the lives of Tibetan Buddhist nuns and exploring the political effects that arise from their nonpolitical daily engagements in the remote, mega-sized Tibetan Buddhist encampment of Yachen Gar. Yasmin Cho's book challenges two assumptions about Tibetan Buddhist communities in China. First, against the assumption that a Buddhist monastic community is best understood in terms of its esoteric qualities, Cho focuses on the material and mundane daily practices that are indispensable to the existence and persistence of such a community and shows how deeply gendered these practices are. Second, against the assumption that Tibetan politics toward the Chinese state is best understood as rebellious, incendiary, and centered upon Tibetan victimhood, the nuns demonstrate how it can be otherwise. Tibetan politics can be unassuming, calm, and self-contained and yet still have substantial political effects. As Politics of Tranquility shows, the nuns in Yachen Gar have called forth an alternative way of living and expressing themselves as Tibetans and as female monastics despite a repressive context. ------------------ Jing Li teaches Chinese language, literature, and cinema. Her research focuses on rural China, independent filmmaking, and digital media cultures. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/religion

Politics of Tranquility: The Material and Mundane Lives of Buddhist Nuns in Post-Mao Tibet (Cornell University Press, 2025) concerns the Tibetan Buddhist revival in China, illustrating the lives of Tibetan Buddhist nuns and exploring the political effects that arise from their nonpolitical daily engagements in the remote, mega-sized Tibetan Buddhist encampment of Yachen Gar. Yasmin Cho's book challenges two assumptions about Tibetan Buddhist communities in China. First, against the assumption that a Buddhist monastic community is best understood in terms of its esoteric qualities, Cho focuses on the material and mundane daily practices that are indispensable to the existence and persistence of such a community and shows how deeply gendered these practices are. Second, against the assumption that Tibetan politics toward the Chinese state is best understood as rebellious, incendiary, and centered upon Tibetan victimhood, the nuns demonstrate how it can be otherwise. Tibetan politics can be unassuming, calm, and self-contained and yet still have substantial political effects. As Politics of Tranquility shows, the nuns in Yachen Gar have called forth an alternative way of living and expressing themselves as Tibetans and as female monastics despite a repressive context. ------------------ Jing Li teaches Chinese language, literature, and cinema. Her research focuses on rural China, independent filmmaking, and digital media cultures. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/book-of-the-day

We're so good, we humans, at telling stories about ourselves, other people, our lives. Sometimes our stories bring us close in to the ground of what is - they remind us of our humanity, our dignity, our care, our vulnerability, and the brief span of our existence alongside one another on this planet. Other times our stories serve to take us away, to numb us, or make ourselves feel safe - perhaps at the expense of others, or to judge ourselves and others harshly for our shared human complexity and fallibility.  So what would it be to have practices of speaking, looking, naming, writing that bring us back close to the ground of what is most unarguably true, and then pay attention to the stories we build on top of that so we have a greater chance to spread our wings and be the ones we long to be? Stories that recognise the sacredness of being human? Stories recognise how often we'll fail, and what we can yet create, and call on us to include both? We begin this week with a luminous piece by our friend Joy Reichart, whose work you can find at soulwriting.org This week's Turning Towards Life is hosted as always by Lizzie Winn and Justin Wise of Thirdspace. This is Turning Towards Life, a weekly live 30 minute conversation hosted by Thirdspace in which Justin Wise and Lizzie Winn dive deep into big questions of human living. Find us on FaceBook to watch live and join in the lively conversation on this episode. You can find videos of every episode, and more about the project on the Turning Towards Life website, and you can also watch and listen on Instagram, YouTube, and as a podcast on Apple, Google and Spotify. Here's our source for this week: What I know to be true What I know to be true is that I needed to zoom this google doc to 125% to comfortably see the words I'm typing. I need to hold packages and bottles far from my face, under lamps and near windows, to read the instructions. What I know to be true is that I didn't take a certain way home last night, driving in the dark, because I could not say for sure where exactly to enter the intersection.  What I know to be true is that there is a light gray streak in my hair, and I love it. And that I bought two pairs of reading glasses at the dollar store but never use them—not out of vanity, but simply because it still works to hold the thing under the light, or far away from my face, or to zoom in on the text (if zooming is an option). What I know to be true is that no matter how enlightened we become we are still in human bodies, and now I get what the Buddhists talk about when they chant, over and over again, that we are going to get sick, and die, and lose everything.  Add to that list mistakes: we are going to make them. Even after learning the lessons. We're going to, as a dear friend puts it, “step in it,” again and again. We're going to watch ourselves with disbelief. How on earth did it happen again? Especially given how much I know, given how much it hurts?  Add to that list disharmony, unfinished business. Add to that list hatred and greed and all those very human tendencies that none of us—no matter who we are—are above.  Add to that list fear: the root of everything we don't like about ourselves, of all that goes wrong. I am human, I will fear. I may not be consumed by it every day. In fact in most moments I actually may get bigger than it; may attach myself to the love, to the joy, that I know is the actual truth. Still, it will sneak out from behind corners in the evening hours. It will stalk me when I am dehydrated, or overcommitted. It will brush me with its little fingers of worry, pelt me with tiny flashes of terror. It'll make me want to solve things using my little human mind: the one that thinks it can singlehandedly battle fear, instead of reaching for a truer, realer source. What I know to be true is that I will not escape any of this. Five decades on this earth in this meat suit, this bone ship, have made that abundantly clear.  What I also know, though, is that there is endless room for my soul to spread out here, and get bigger, and understand more, and giggle when I do the human things, and greet it all with equanimity, and accept the mission I assigned myself in the time before memory, in the time of clear sight, way back before my vision started to blur.  Nov 17, 2025 Written by Joy Reichart www.soulwriting.org Photo by Naoki Suzuki on Unsplash --- Join Us Live in 2026 Foundations of Coaching, Feb 9-10 2026, Online Our two day introduction to the deep and wonderful way of working with people that we call 'Integral Development Coaching'. www.wearethirdspace.org/foundations-of-coaching Turning Towards Life Live Season 2, from March 2026 Our Turning Towards Life live programme of community, learning and reflection runs in six month seasons, in person on Zoom once a month. We're very excited about it. A chance to expand beyond the bounds of a podcast into forming a community of learning and practice. You can find out more and join us here: www.turningtowards.life/live ---- About Turning Towards Life Turning Towards Life, a week-by-week conversation inviting us deeply into our lives, is a live 30 minute conversation hosted by Justin Wise and Lizzie Winn of Thirdspace.  Find us on FaceBook to join in the lively conversation on this episode. You can find videos of every episode, and more about the project on the Turning Towards Life website, and you can also watch and listen on Instagram, YouTube, and as a podcast on Apple, Amazon Music and Spotify. Join Our Weekly Mailing: www.turningtowards.life/subscribe Support Us: www.buymeacoffee.com/turningtowardslife

ADZG 1265 An exploration of how this important Zen sutra makes the case for the underlying emptiness of all phenomenon — including some earlier Buddhist teachings. ADZG Sunday Morning Dharma […] The post Unpacking the Heart Sutra first appeared on Ancient Dragon Zen Gate.

We explore the “28° Sagittarius New Moon Searches Eternal Truth”.The 28°25' Sagittarius New Moon cosmic energies peak on 19 December at 8:43 p.m. EST (Washington DC) and 4:43 p.m. UT (Greenwich, UK). This week we synthesize with the New Moon astrology, numerology, tarot, Jyotish Nakshatra, and Sabian Symbols—a mystical imagery set serving as a unique tool for personal exploration and astrological insight.This is a very thoughtful New Moon despite most all the planets now traveling direct except for a few still traveling in apparent retrograde motion. They are expansive Jupiter, the awakener Uranus, alchemist Chiron, and inclusive disrupter Eris. However, our thoughts rotate as Mercury, now totally out of its recent retrograde path, positions square to the Lunar Nodes. Often called the bendings, our focus turns to the south node in Virgo to figure what form of its archetype we personally need to release. Because Jupiter that rules this new moon makes efforts to adjust to what values really are at the core of understanding a renewed belief system that might include all of oneself as well as in recognition of others. A tall order unless we are willing to readjust our alliances with refocused values.Joining Sue Rose Minahan from Kailua-Kona, Big Island, HI, are Justin Crockett Elzie of Port Angeles, WA, and Elizabeth (Liz) Muschett from Camano Island, WA. Speaker bios are listed below and on the Talk Cosmos website.Catch new episodes weekly through YouTube, Facebook, radio, and podcast platforms. To stay connected, subscribe to TalkCosmos.com and connect with the latest content.ELIZABETH (LIZ) MUSCHETT: Professional Astrologer, Intuitive, Numerology, Tarotist, Counselor; International Teacher & Tutor; Workshops; Lecturer; Author & Blogger. / @elizabethlizmuschett episodes. Past board member of WSAA. Sacred Healing Counselor; International Reiki Master & Teacher. Provides nurturing in-depth individual and couples consultations. https://www.ALightPath.com Email: liz@alightpath.comJUSTIN CROCKETT ELZIE: An Archetypal Jyotish Astrologer, Teacher, Spiritualist Evidential Medium, Yoga & Meditation Teacher, Buddhist, and Author. Speaking at 2026 UAC. Justin specializes in Predictive/Electional, and Karmic Astrology. He combines Western Ancient Astrology and Modern Psychological Astrology with Eastern Jyotish Astrology providing in-depth analysis of Natal charts, Synastry (couples charts), Draconic Charts, Progressions, Transits and Planetary Returns. Justin does Astrological research into arcane Astrological concepts, focusing on the mystical/occult side of Astrology. / @astrologicalyogi Email: justin.elzie@gmail.com | https://www.JustinCrockettElzie.com SUE ROSE MINAHAN: Evolutionary Astrologer & Consultant, Workshops, Lecturer, Talk Host, Writer. Vibrational Astrology student. Dwarf Planet Astrology graduate. Kepler Astrology Toastmasters (KAT); Wine Country Speakers. Associate of Fine Arts Music Degree; Certificate of Fine Arts in Jazz. Since 2018 Talk Cosmos insightful conversations awaken heart and soul consciousness. On Talk Cosmos YouTube Channel, Facebook, Radio, Podcasts. https://www.TalkCosmos.com email: info@talkcosmos.com#talkcosmos #sueminahan #elizabethlizmuschett #justincrockettelzie #uranusingemini #astrologypodcast #podcasting #sabiansymbols#alightpathmuschett #numerology #tarot #nakshatra #vedic #neptuneinaries #kknw #astrology #podcast #sueroseminahan #archetypalsymbols #jupiterincancer #saturninpisces #alightpath #astroweather #lunarcycle #moonenergy #newmoonritual #sagittariusvibes #celestial #astroinsights #zodiaclife #astrowisdom #cosmicguidance #astroguidance #empowermentjourney #newmoonmagic #newmoonintentions #archetypalsymbols #astrologicalyogi #justinelzie #wintersolstice #capricornnewmoon #sagittariusseason #retrograde #jupitersquarechiron #jupiterretrograde #saturnpisces #sagittariusnewmoon #chironretrogradeinariesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Secular Buddhist Essentials is a weekly online program that shares the timeless wisdom of the Buddha. As a Secular Buddhist Organization, SBT offers a practical presentation focused on the positive life-affirming message of the Buddha, while deemphasizing the more religious, mystical, and cultural content found in traditional Buddhism. Our aim is to inform and guide without sharing presumptions of what to believe. Learn more about this program at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://sbtonline.org/sbe/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  Venerable Tenzin Tarpa is the founder and director of SBT –The Secular Buddhist Tradition. A fully ordained Buddhist monk and student of The Dalai Lama, Venerable Tarpa is a teacher, author, and philosopher with nearly three decades in Buddhist studies, including a decade in Buddhist monasteries in India.  SBT – the Secular Buddhist Tradition, is an international spiritual community dedicated to Secular Buddhism and the timeless wisdom of the Buddha. SBT presents the Buddha's teachings as neither a religion nor exotic belief system, emphasizing and prioritizing those aspects that we deem most credible, illuminating, and effective. Learn more about SBT and Venerable Tarpa at: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠http://SBTonline.org⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠#buddhism ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠#secularbuddhism⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠#meditation ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠#mindfulness⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠#happiness⁠⁠⁠ #Dalailama #spirituality ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  

Welcome to a new episode of The Way Out Is In: The Zen Art of Living, a podcast series mirroring Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh's deep teachings of Buddhist philosophy: a simple yet profound methodology for dealing with our suffering, and for creating more happiness and joy in our lives. In this installment, Zen Buddhist monk Brother Phap Huu and leadership coach Jo Confino explore the lifelong journey of self-forgiveness and how to forgive ourselves. How do we find the capacity to let go of past hurts and come into the fullness of our lives?  The conversation also touches upon themes like self-love, self-compassion, community, spiritual growth, impermanence, the coexistence of suffering and happiness, and the importance of ongoing practice. Brother Phap Huu discusses the Buddhist perspective of the Dharma threading through time, embracing past, present, and future; how loving oneself begins with recognizing and accepting one's stories and scars; the importance of treating oneself with kindness and compassion; acknowledging unskillful actions; practicing with the inner child; and much more. In addition, personal stories shared by the presenters illustrate how forgiveness and self-love evolve over time, and that forgiving oneself is vital for genuine compassion and service. The episode concludes with aspirations for the new year. Co-produced by the Plum Village App:https://plumvillage.app/ And Global Optimism:https://globaloptimism.com/ With support from the Thich Nhat Hanh Foundation:https://thichnhathanhfoundation.org/ List of resources Pilgrimage: ‘In the Footsteps of the Buddha’https://plumvillage.org/event/pilgrimage/in-the-footsteps-of-the-buddha-2 Being with Busyness: Zen Ways to Transform Overwhelm and Burnouthttps://www.parallax.org/product/being-with-busyness/ Calm in the Storm: Zen Ways to Cultivate Stability in an Anxious Worldhttps://www.parallax.org/product/calm-in-the-storm/ Interbeinghttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interbeing The Way Out Is In: ‘Healing Our Inner Child: Pathways to Embrace Our Suffering (Episode #10)'https://plumvillage.org/podcast/healing-our-inner-child-pathways-to-embrace-our-suffering The Way Out Is In: ‘The Three Jewels (Episode #89)'https://plumvillage.org/podcast/the-three-jewels-episode-89 ‘Looking Deeply: Healing the Inner Child'https://plumvillage.org/articles/healing-the-inner-child The Inner Child (short guided meditation)https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zauJYihF2fQ Dharma Talks: ‘Taking Refuge in the Three Jewels'https://plumvillage.org/library/dharma-talks/taking-refuge-in-the-three-jewels-sr-chan-duc-spring-retreat-2018-05-20 John Bradshawhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Bradshaw_(author) Sutras: ‘Discourse on Knowing the Better Way to Live Alone'https://plumvillage.org/library/sutras/discourse-on-knowing-the-better-way-to-live-alone The Order of Interbeinghttps://plumvillage.org/community/order-of-interbeing Quotes “What we have learned in the art of mindful living and the art of love and understanding is that we are ever-changing. We’re constantly changing. The Buddha has said that we cannot bathe in the same river twice. When we bathe in that river, the river is not the same and we are not the same.” “The Buddha says that suffering is made of non-suffering elements – and that means you have happiness inside.” “What I’ve learned from my journey is that healing is always a verb.” “There is no way to healing; healing is the way.” “Our practice of listening is very important. When we say we have to learn to listen, listen not to respond, but just to listen. Listen to acknowledge, accept, and witness.” “It’s important to be in the present moment, but it's also important to have an aspiration to bring into the present moment – not to see in the future, but to see coming alive right now.”

Imagine feeling a burst of joy every time someone else wins. A friend gets a promotion, your sister finds love, a stranger shares good news, and you feel happiness with them. That spark of delight is the heart of sympathetic joy, or mudita, a Buddhist practice that  flips the script on comparison and jeaousy. It turns the happiness of others into a source of our own happiness. It's not magic, but it feels like it. When sympathetic joy is practiced with the bodhicitta intention to become a Buddha for the benefit of all beings, it becomes "Immeasurable Joy." Immeasurable Joy is a trained capacity, a state of mind you can cultivate until it becomes natural and limitless. When we learn to genuinely rejoice in others' good fortune, our own heart becomes lighter. Life feels less like a competition and more like a shared celebration. Science-backed Benefits of Sympathetic Joy: Greater life satisfaction and happiness Better relationships More willingness to help others Better health outcomes and lower stress (Smith, 2022) Ways to practice sympathetic joy: Use meditation:  Start with a loved one: Begin by focusing on someone you care about and genuinely rejoicing in their happiness.  Expand the feeling: Gradually extend this feeling to others you are neutral toward, and then to those you find difficult.  Change your mindset: Instead of feeling that happiness is scarce, recognize the interconnectedness of all beings and cultivate an appreciation for what you have.  Practice gratitude: Cultivating a sense of gratitude for your own life can help you rejoice in the good fortune of others without feeling like there is less for you.  Sympathetic joy is one of the Four Immeasurables in Mahayana Buddhism: Immeasurable Love Immeasurable Compassion Immeasurable Joy Immeasurable Equanimity "One day, a Brahmin man asked the Buddha, 'What can I do to be sure that I will be with Brahma after I die?' The Buddha replied,'As Brahma is the source of Love, to dwell with him you must practice the Brahma-viharas [Four Immeasurables]—love, compassion, joy, and equanimity. (Hahn, 1997)" References with links: Smith, Jeremy Adam (March, 2022). What Is Sympathetic Joy and How Can You Feel More of It? Greater Good: The Science of a Meaningful Life. Retrieved from: https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/what_is_sympathetic_joy_and_how_can_you_feel_more_of_it Hahn, Thich Naht (1997). Dharma Talk: The Four Immeasurable Minds. Parallax Press. Retrieved from: https://www.parallax.org/mindfulnessbell/article/dharma-talk-the-four-immeasurable-minds-2/ Find us at the links below:  Our Link Tree: https://linktr.ee/BuddhismForEveryone Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Buddhismforeveryone Private Facebook Group:: https://www.facebook.com/groups/sanghatalk/ Website: Buddhismforeveryone.com Instagram: @buddhism4everyone X: @Joannfox77 TikTok: @buddhism4everyone YouTube: @Buddhism4Everyone To learn more about virtual classes with JoAnn Fox: Buddhist Study Program To learn about Life Coaching with JoAnn Fox visit www.BuddhismforEveryone.com/coaching or email JoAnn Fox at joann@buddhismforeveryone.com

In this interview I am once again joined by Dr Ben Joffe, anthropologist, occultist, and scholar practitioner of Tibetan Buddhism. Ben reveals the industry convention of guru ghostwriting in which spiritual teachers employ one or a team of writers to produce their dharma books, explains his collaborative process with Nida Chenagtsang on their latest Vajrayana book, and sheds light on his own editorial process. Ben discusses whether a scholar should have practice experience before translating religious texts, considers whether historical inaccuracies debunk the spiritual value of Buddhist scriptures, and raises questions about the origin of terma treasure texts. Ben also compares the Yuthok Nyinthig retreat format to the Abramelin Ritual of Western Occultism, details the signs of success in tantric practice, and shares Yuthok's promise to appear in bodily form to practitioners with sufficient devotion and attainment. … Video version: https://www.guruviking.com/podcast/ep337-guru-ghostwriting-tantric-retreat-dr-ben-joffe Also available on Youtube, iTunes, & Spotify – search ‘Guru Viking Podcast'. … Topics include: 00:00 - Intro 01:12 - Ghostwriting for gurus 08:03 - Lamas often don't write their books 10:24 - Ben's editorial process 18:32 - Is guru ghostwriting a dirty secret? 19:17 - Vajrayana jargon vs a felt sense 29:56 - What is a scholar practitioner? 37:39 - Ben's retreat experiences 41:13 - Did Yuthok the Elder really exist? 50:06 - Anachronisms and retroactive attribution in Tibetan historiography 51:57 - Origins of the Tibetan medical tantras (rgyud bzhi) 58:08 - Terma treasure texts: mystical revelation or an editorial process? 01:02:08 - Why have Western scholars been hesitant to question terma texts? 01:05:04 - Does critical scholarship debunk Buddhism? 01:10:55 - Medicine Buddha ex machina 01:12:45 - Referring out 01:13:24 - Encountering Yuthok vs the Holy Guardian Angel in the Abramelin Ritual 01:20:10 - Special 7-day Yuthok ngondro 01:24:10 - Is Yuthok Nyingthig the best tantric system? 01:28:27 - The power of aspiration prayers 01:30:53 - How long does it take to become fully enlightened? 01:33:51 - Practice according to number, time, or signs 01:34:54 - Mythic resonance of lineage 01:36:33 - Signs of spiritual progress 01:41:35 - Ben comments on the Abramelin Ritual 01:43:59 - Sumton's Yeshe Zung's devotional prayer 01:46:50 - Yuthok as a Mighty Dead 01:48:47 - Do Yuthok's promises cause ego inflation and delusion? 01:52:09 - Verifying dreams and spiritual signs 01:58:26 - How to connect with spiritual blessings 02:05:09 - What are blessings? 02:06:32 - Spiritual signs in the Jesuit tradition 02:08:49 - Ngondro as a hazing 02:10:55 - Do people expect to encounter Yuthok at Dr Nida's retreats? 02:15:38 - Dr Nida's approach vs traditional contexts 02:21:00 - Typical student profile and outcomes 02:29:28 - Permissive approach to tantric vows 02:32:37 - Pros and cons of laissez-faire tantric practice 02:33:28 - Charismatic founder stage 
… Previous episodes with Dr Ben Joffe: - https://www.guruviking.com/search?q=joffe Previous episodes with Dr Nida Chenagtsang: - https://www.guruviking.com/search?q=nida 
… To find out more about Dr Ben Joffe, visit: - https://perfumedskull.com/ - http://www.skypressbooks.com/ … For more interviews, videos, and more visit: - https://www.guruviking.com Music ‘Deva Dasi' by Steve James

Episode #448: In the second of our three-part series with Steve Smith, a teacher in the Mahasi tradition, he continues reflecting on his half-century exploration into the country's spirituality, culture, and politics, while also sharing what he learned from prolonged and intimate contact with some of the greatest meditation teachers and civil leaders of the day. Steve went to Seikhun, Mahasi Sayadaw's village, and started his practice there. He practiced with local villagers, as well as senior government ministers, future democratic leaders, business magnates, and others with elite social standing. Between meditation sessions, Steve remembers long conversations that meandered between politics and practice. His fascinating, first-handaccount of the role that meditation practice played in the upper echelons of the democracy movement is one that perhaps has never been examined thoroughly by any past scholar or historian. When Steve traveled or return back home to Hawaii, he often found himself disappointed that Buddhist and mindfulness communities elsewhere weren't able—or even interested in trying—to integrate meditation with social engagement. He was convinced that in Myanmar, the Dhamma was a seamless aspect of people's everyday lives, that “the same generative and ancient teachings of the Buddha [were being] applied in their deepest personal, psychological, emotional, spiritual lives, as well as how it influenced their social, and government and business lives as well...” He learned much from his monastic teachers about how to respond effectively to tyranny, in particular, Sayadaw U Pandita. This great teacher never engaged in acts of overt defiance or explicit advocacy, yet unmistakably signaled his displeasure in subtle ways. To Steve, this was the Burmese Saṅgha in its very best form: a calm nobility in standing up for righteousness, creating a ripple effect that impacted all of lay society. Steve feels tremendous gratitude for the instructions he received so generously as a lay meditator and monk in Burma, the result of painstakingly care in assuring the transmission of the teachings from one generation to the next… and ultimately to foreign seekers. In return, he has given back in different ways over the years, from supporting health and education projects throughout the Sagaing Hills, to fundraising for nuns, to organizing annual acupuncture treatment for villagers. He also lent a hand when his Burmese friends found themselves in the crosshairs of the regime.

Abbiamo un'idea del buddismo come di una religione basata sulla non violenza, elemento decisamente rilevante, e fatichiamo a comprendere certe pieghe che il buddismo ha preso in Asia. Ma in paesi come lo Sri Lanka e il Myanmar i monaci buddisti sono stati invece figure centrali in movimenti che promuovono l'odio settario, abbandonando gli insegnamenti del Buddha in favore di un obiettivo più comune e terreno: il potere politico.  Le fonti audio della puntata sono tratte da: Aluthgama: BBS' Galagoda Atte Gnanasara's inciteful and fear mongering speech, Colombo Telegraph, 9 giugno 2014; Aluthgama Muslim Attack, canale Youtube Keppetipola Disawe, 19 luglio 2014; Myanmar's Anti-Muslim monk Ashin Wirathu joins hands with a Sri Lankan group, Ap Archive, 3 agosto 2015; The Burmese monk who preaches hate toward Muslims, canale Youtube Quartz, 6 novembre 2016; Sitagu SayaDaw kyi Dhamma Talk, canale Youtube Sun tiri, 23 maggio 2017; Wirathu: Myanmar military releases firebrand Buddhist monk, canale Youtube News of the world, 7 settembre 2021; Gnanasara Thero sentenced to 6 months , canale Youtube Ada Derana, 14 giugno 2018  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Bhante Sathi explains that the five precepts existed before the Buddha and arose naturally from mindful communities recognizing their own desire for safety, well-being, and escape from harm. By understanding our instinct for self-preservation, we learn to extend that same respect and care to others, forming the foundations of ethical conduct. Ultimately, these precepts function as tools for inner growth, allowing us to cultivate mindfulness, responsibility, and freedom from self-created suffering.

Ajahn Dhammasiha encourages us to refocus our meditative effort on letting go. We can get overly obsessed with focussing on a particular meditation object, and lose sight of our general mindstate: We may fall back into the long established habit of acquiring things, of trying to get something. Instead, everything in our cultivation of bhāvanā should aim towards letting go. Website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Our Spotify Playlists⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Newsletter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Dhammagiri Youtube Channel⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Pics⁠⁠#dhammatalk #buddhism #theravada #meditation #buddhistmeditation #lettinggo #buddhistwisdom

11th December 2025  Ajahn Santutthi hosted this week's meditation session at the Roleystone Family Centre. Roleystone Meditation Group's weekly classes are about an hour long and include a talk on meditation, meditating together, and questions & answers. The sessions are led by a Buddhist monk from Kusala Hermitage in Roleystone (Buddhist Society of WA). Support us on https://ko-fi.com/thebuddhistsocietyofwa BSWA teachings are available: BSWA Teachings BSWA Podcast Channel BSWA DeeperDhamma Podbean Channel BSWA YouTube   

"Resurrection" is a science fiction drama film written and directed by Bi Gan. It follows Miss Shu (Shu Qi) in a future where most of humanity has lost the capacity to dream, who discovers that one inhuman creature (Jackson Yee) is still able to experience them. She enters the monster's dreams, using her ability to perceive illusions to determine the truth in its visions of Chinese history. The film is structured into six chapters, each corresponding to one of the six senses recognized in Buddhist thought: sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch, and mind. The film had its world premiere in the main competition of the 2025 Cannes Film Festival, where it won the Prix Spécial. Bi Gan was kind enough to spend some time talking with us about his work and experience making the film, which you can listen to below. Please be sure to check out the film, which will open in theaters on December 12th from Janus Films. Thank you, and enjoy! Check out more on NextBestPicture.com Please subscribe on... Apple Podcasts - https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/negs-best-film-podcast/id1087678387?mt=2 Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/7IMIzpYehTqeUa1d9EC4jT YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWA7KiotcWmHiYYy6wJqwOw And be sure to help support us on Patreon for as little as $1 a month at https://www.patreon.com/NextBestPicture and listen to this podcast ad-free Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ethan welcomes Dan Harris, one of the leading voices in the mindfulness movement, for a live (and lively) conversation about the quest for stability in an unstable world, and to present the 2026 Yearlong Buddhist Studies Program. When Ethan mentioned a classic quote from the Indian master Shantideva about "covering the world in leather," Dan responded with one of his slightly irreverent and not-safe-for-the-monastery quips. It was a great conversation. Check it out! A former ABC news anchor, Dan Harris is the bestselling author of 10% Happier and Meditation for Fidgety Skeptics. He hosts the 10% Happier Podcast. You can follow his work and subscribe to his substack at DanHarris.com . Please support the podcast via Substack and subscribe for free or with small monthly contributions. Additional links and show notes are available there. Paid subscribers will receive occasional extras like guided meditations, extra podcast episodes and more! The Thursday Meditation Group happens each week at 8am ET on Thursdays, and a guided audio meditations are released monthly. Another bonus podcast for paid subscribers discussed a mindful take on intuition, and Ethan also offered instruction in the RAIN method for working with emotions with self-compassion. These are all available to paid subscribers. You can also subscribe to The Road Home podcast wherever you get your pods (Apple, Ethan's Website, etc). You can also subscribe to The Road Home podcast wherever you get your pods (Apple, Ethan's Website, etc). Find out about the 2026 Yearlong Buddhist Studies program at this link! Check out about upcoming live events like a New Year's Eve Intention-Setting workshop and a live talk with Ethan and Roshi Joan Halifax January 6th! A new free video course on a classic Buddhist contemplation called The Five Remembrances is available at this link. Check out all the cool offerings at our podcast sponsor Dharma Moon. Free video courses co-taught by Ethan and others, such as The Three Marks of Existence, are also available for download at Dharma Moon.

In this gripping episode, Jenilee sits down with Steve Kang to explore his radical journey from devout Buddhism into a near-death encounter that he says took him through hell and heaven. Raised and trained in Buddhism, Steve struggled with deep questions about justice and suffering. But at age 19, after a drug overdose laced with multiple substances, he spiraled into spiritual darkness, demonic encounters, and an experience he describes as “eight hours in hell.”Steve shares how deception shaped his early worldview, what he believes opened the door to spiritual warfare in his life, and how Jesus intervened during the overdose and the eight-hour surgery that followed. He also recounts a later vision of heaven that transformed his understanding of God, Scripture, and the urgency of discipleship.This conversation goes beyond the near-death event itself. Jenilee and Steve unpack why many Christians drift into passive faith, why discipleship is non-negotiable, and how believers can move from spiritual complacency into Spirit-led transformation.What We Cover in This EpisodeSteve's early life in Buddhism and training under monksThe spiritual crisis his family experienced after financial collapseHow addiction and hopelessness pushed him toward destructive choicesThe overdose that led to demonic encounters and a suicide attemptWhat Steve says he experienced during “8 hours in hell”The intercessors who prayed during his life-or-death surgeryHis encounter with Jesus and the moment he surrenderedA vision of heaven nine months later and its impact on his callingWhy discipleship matters more than weekly church attendanceThe dangers of “Christianity without transformation”What spiritual mentorship really looks likeWhy Steve rejects universalism and emphasizes the seriousness of eternityHow believers can cultivate a Spirit-led life instead of driftingGET STEVE'S BOOK:Book: 8 Hours in Hell (formerly A Testimony and the Spirit-Filled and Biblical Christian Life)If You're New to FaithSteve shared a prayer at the end of this episode for those ready to begin following Jesus. If you prayed along, Jenilee would love to hear your story. Just email her at: jen@javawithjenpodcast.comShare This EpisodeIf this conversation encouraged you or challenged you, send it to someone who needs hope, clarity, or a renewed seriousness about following Jesus.----------------------------------------------------✈️ Come to Greece with Me!We're walking where the Bible happened—Athens, Corinth & Santorini! Eat amazing food, explore history, and encounter Jesus.

Are you wisely using your genius energy? In this episode, Michael reconnects with Diana Hill, a therapist and author who has recently explored the concept of focusing your genius energy on what matters most through her book Wise Effort.Their discussion spans from insights from ancient Buddhist wisdom to the application of commitment therapy to the practice of finding one's unique 'genius energy.' If you're interested in practical ways to maximize your strengths, handle emotional challenges, and cultivate a meaningful and balanced life, you'll want to join them to unearth actionable tips and exercises for making the most out of your efforts and ultimately enhancing your well-being.Listen and Learn: What is “Wise Effort” and how can this practice reshape your energy, choices, and well-being?Identifying and using your unique “genius energy” while also recognizing how overusing those strengths can become a stumbling block, and how cultivating awareness, curiosity, and context helps direct those strengths with wisdomPractical self-reflection questions to uncover your geniusA simple four-question “energy audit” for knowing when to dial your genius up or downWhere true wisdom really comes from, and what if rethinking how growth happensAdopting “Wise Effort” helps you understand your struggles in context, align your actions with your values, and transform both self-judgment and relationshipsBringing mindful intention to even mundane tasks to transform how you use your time, connect with yourself, and balance structure with flexibility in a meaningful lifeResources: Wise Effort: How to Focus Your Genius Energy on What Matters Most: https://bookshop.org/a/30734/9781649633361 Diana's Website: drdianahill.comConnect with Diana on Social Media: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drdianahillhttps://www.facebook.com/drdianahill/https://www.youtube.com/drdianahillhttps://www.instagram.com/drdianahill/https://insighttimer.com/drdianahill FREE Energy Audit guide: https://drdianahill.com/energy Wise Effort: The Business Of Therapy Program: https://drdianahill.com/wise-effort-the-business-of-therapy Michael's Real Play Episode on The Wise Effort Podcast: https://wiseeffortshow.com/episode/living-life-on-your-own-terms-with-michael-herold-real-play About Diana HillDr. Diana Hill, PhD is a clinical psychologist, author, international trainer, and recognized expert in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), compassion-based interventions, and psychological flexibility. With a background that bridges neuroscience, mindfulness, and behavioral science, she is known for making complex psychological concepts both practical and inspiring.A summa cum laude graduate of the University of California, Santa Barbara, where she majored in Biopsychology, Dr. Hill earned her doctoral degree in Clinical Psychology from the University of Colorado at Boulder. She later collaborated with Dr. Debra Safer at Stanford University, researching Dialectical Behavior Therapy and Appetite Awareness Training (AAT) for bulimia nervosa. She completed her clinical internship at the University of California, Davis, followed by a postdoctoral fellowship at La Luna Intensive Outpatient Center, where she later served as Clinical Director and developed their ACT- and AAT-based treatment program.A leading voice in the evolution of ACT and Process-Based Therapy, Dr. Hill works closely with pioneers in the field. She co-leads ACT BootCamp Training for Therapists with ACT founder Dr. Steven Hayes and is actively involved in shaping the future of therapy—including applications of AI, advances in diagnostic systems, network modeling, and process-based approaches. She serves as a senior meditation teacher and curriculum developer for the University of California's Climate Resilience Initiative, integrating ACT and mindfulness into interdisciplinary environmental education.Dr. Hill has contributed to publications in the International Journal of Eating Disorders and co-authored a seminal article on Process-Based Therapy, advancing evidence-based clinical practice. She is a contributor to PsychFlex, a digital platform that helps clinicians incorporate ACT into their work and track client outcomes in real time through ecological measurements. She also speaks regularly at global conferences including the Association for Contextual Behavioral Science (ACBS) World Conference, Innovations in Psychotherapy, and the Evolution of Psychotherapy Conference.In addition to her clinical and academic work, Dr. Hill teaches at organizations and retreat centers such as InsightLA, Blue Spirit Costa Rica, PESI, and PraxisCET. She serves on the clinical advisory board of Lightfully Behavioral Health and is a board member of the Institute for Better Health.She is the author of Wise Effort: How to Focus Your Genius Energy on What Matters Most (Sounds True, 2025), The Self-Compassion Daily Journal, I Know I Should Exercise But…, and ACT Daily Journal. Her insights have been featured in NPR, The Wall Street Journal, Psychology Today, Mindful, Prevention, Real Simple, Woman's Day, and other leading media outlets. She is also the host of the Wise Effort podcast.With more than 20 years of study and practice in yoga and meditation—including training in the tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh—Dr. Hill integrates contemplative practice into her approach to healing and growth. She lives in California, where she raises two sons, cares for bees, and embodies the Wise Effort principles she teaches—living a life guided by presence, purpose, and compassion.Related Episodes:48. Practical Wisdom with Barry Schwartz349. The Hunger Habit with Judson Brewer188. Unwinding Anxiety with Judson Brewer122. Taking in the Good with Rick Hanson138. Exploring Existence and Purpose: Existentialism with Robyn Walser320. Anger and Forgiveness with Robyn Walser346. Self-compassion Daily Journal with Diana Hill301. Seven Daily ACT Practices for Living Fully with Diana Hill and Debbie SorensenSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this meditation, we explore the subtle body, the energetic connection between body and mind, through the lens of Tibetan Buddhism. It's part of a broader conversation we've been having about art, embodiment, and Buddhist practice.Together, we'll gently guide our awareness through the body, connect with the breath, and reflect on how our mind and body are not separate, but deeply intertwined. We'll also explore how this energy body shows up in movement, creativity, emotion, and everyday life.Episode 211: Meditation on the Subtle Body Support the show

Losing your cognitive abilities is a terrifying thought, but what if you could face it with grace and resilience? In this episode, we're diving into the world of early-stage cognitive impairment. We explore a variety of cognitive strategies. Learn how to stay active and engaged, even when faced with challenges. Discover how to adapt your daily routines. For example, we'll discuss practical ways to navigate cooking and other household tasks. Furthermore, we'll talk about the power of support groups. Most importantly, we'll share insights on emotional and spiritual resilience. These are all valuable cognitive strategies for maintaining your quality of life. Ultimately, our goal is to empower you with cognitive strategies. Tune in to learn how to proactively manage memory changes. Our Guest: Sharon Lukert Sharon is living with Mild Cognitive Impairment due to Alzheimer's Disease. She is devoted to understanding this condition and sees it as an opportunity for outreach to others and personal growth. With a background as a nurse, Buddhist chaplain, meditator, and educator, she brings invaluable insights to living with a neurodegenerative disease. She integrates her work with patients and students, decades of meditation, and emotional resilience training into her writing. She explains, "The book is intended to be an affirming guide to enhance a positive approach toward the emotional and spiritual aspects of facing a neurodegenerative disease. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Related Episodes: Navigating MCI - Not The End of The Road, Just A Bend in The Road Caregiving Tips for Each Day of The Year. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Sign Up for more Advice & Wisdom - email newsletter. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Please help us keep our show going by supporting our sponsors. Thank you. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Make Your Brain Span Match Your LifeSpan Relevate from NeuroReserve With Relevate nutritional supplement, you get science-backed nutrition to help protect your brain power today and for years to come. You deserve a brain span that lasts as long as your lifespan. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Feeling overwhelmed? HelpTexts can be your pocket therapist. Going through a tough time? HelpTexts offers confidential support delivered straight to your phone via text message. Whether you're dealing with grief, caregiving stress, or just need a mental health boost, their expert-guided texts provide personalized tips and advice. Sign up for a year of support and get: Daily or twice-weekly texts tailored to your situation Actionable strategies to cope and move forward Support for those who care about you (optional) HelpTexts makes getting help easy and convenient. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ List of the Top 20 Alzheimer's Podcasts via FeedSpot! See where we rank. Join Fading Memories On Social Media! If you've enjoyed this episode, please share this podcast with other caregivers! You'll find us on social media at the following links. Instagram LinkedIn Facebook Contact Jen at hello@fadingmemoriespodcast.com Or learn more at Our Website

In this episode of The Psychedelic Podcast, Paul F. Austin reconnects with longtime Buddhist practitioner and former Synthesis co-founder Martijn Schirp, founder of Upāyosis. They explore his journey from pioneering modern psilocybin retreats to creating A Path Between Worlds, a year-long contemplative training that integrates Buddhist practice, ecological ethics, and psychedelic skillful means. Find full show notes and links here: https://thethirdwave.co/podcast/episode-333/?ref=278  Martijn shares lessons from Synthesis's rise and collapse, how time in the Himalayas reshaped his contemplative path, and why "ego porousness" may offer a healthier frame than "ego death." He and Paul discuss how Buddhist principles like interdependence and skillful means can guide responsible psychedelic work — and why awakening today must include service to a planet in crisis. Martijn Schirp is a longtime Buddhist practitioner and founder of Upāyosis, where he leads A Path Between Worlds, a yearlong contemplative training blending Buddhist practice, ecological ethics, contemplative science, and optional psychedelic components. Previously, he co-founded the Synthesis Institute, helping pioneer modern, medically supervised psilocybin retreats and training programs. He writes, teaches, and mentors at the intersection of Buddhist wisdom, contemplative science, and psychedelic practice. Highlights: From Synthesis to spiritual renewal in the Himalayas Lessons from crisis: leadership, burnout, impermanence What Buddhism can teach the psychedelic field The fifth precept and "skillful means" First principles of skillful psychedelic use Ego porousness vs. ego dissolution Ecological ethics as spiritual practice A Path Between Worlds: a contemplative year of service Episode Links: Upāyosis A Path Between Worlds 12-month program Episode Sponsors: The Microdosing Practitioner Certification at Psychedelic Coaching Institute. The Practitioner Certification Program at Psychedelic Coaching Institute. Golden Rule Mushrooms - Get a lifetime discount of 10% with code THIRDWAVE at checkout These show links may contain affiliate links. Third Wave receives a small percentage of the product price if you purchase through the above affiliate links. Disclaimer: Third Wave occasionally partners with or shares information about other people, companies, and/or providers. While we work hard to only share information about ethical and responsible third parties, we can't and don't control the behavior of, products and services offered by, or the statements made by people, companies, or providers other than Third Wave. Accordingly, we encourage you to research for yourself, and consult a medical, legal, or financial professional before making decisions in those areas. Third Wave isn't responsible for the statements, conduct, services, or products of third parties. If we share a coupon code, we may receive a commission from sales arising from customers who use our coupon code. No one is required to use our coupon codes. This content is for educational, informational, and entertainment purposes only. We do not promote or encourage the illegal use of any controlled substances. Nothing said here is medical or legal advice. Always consult a qualified medical or mental health professional before making decisions related to your health. The views expressed herein belong to the speaker alone, and do not reflect the views of any other person, company, or organization.

Few people blend the Buddhist spiritual path with the 12-Step journey as seamlessly and as helpfully as Fr. Bill's guest Kevin Griffin. A teacher of Buddhist meditation for many years as well as an excellent writer and musician, Kevin is also a man in long-term recovery from addiction with a powerful message to share. This series explores Kevin's book One Breath at a Time: Buddhism and the Twelve Steps. It's sure to be of interest to spiritual travelers of all stripes. This episode completes the series focusing on the nature of a SPIRITUAL AWAKENING & how we're called to CARRY THE MESSAGE. Show notes: One Breath at a Time: Buddhism and the Twelve Steps by Kevin GriffinKevin's website: https://kevingriffin.net/Jack Cornfield's Bringing Home the Dharma     The Body Keeps the Score by  Bessel van der Kolk M.D. 

Plus: Saying thank you to your anxiety and the opportunity in the dumpster fire.   Jack Kornfield, who trained as a Buddhist monk in the monasteries of Thailand, India and Burma, then returned to the US, where he became one of the leading voices in Buddhism in the West. He co-founded the Insight Meditation Society in Barre, Massachusetts, with Sharon Salzberg and Joseph Goldstein, then he went on to start the Spirit Rock Medication Center in Woodacre, California. He's written many books, including his latest, All In This Together, which is the focus of the conversation you're about to hear, along with a new online course he just posted, called Stand Up for Compassion – which is about staying steady in difficult times.   In this episode we talk about: The causes of happiness  The opportunities (And this is a counterintuitive notion, but…) The opportunities in the suffering we're experiencing today How to stand up for what you care about while staying calm and steady Ways to zoom out and see the bigger picture   How to cultivate both courage and Joy  How Jack gets consistent hits of Joy in his own life Why intention is important — and how to cultivate healthy intentions  And other survival strategies for these times This holiday season, 10% Happier is teaming up with dozens of podcasts for an ambitious goal: to lift three entire villages in Rwanda out of extreme poverty. Join us by visiting GiveDirectly.org/Dan and supporting the #PodsFightPoverty campaign.   Join Dan's online community here Follow Dan on social: Instagram, TikTok Subscribe to our YouTube Channel To advertise on the show, contact sales@advertisecast.com or visit https://advertising.libsyn.com/10HappierwithDanHarris