Podcasts about spirit rock

The two practices that helped turn this self described scowling, sarcastic skeptic into an expert meditator.   Devin Berry is a Core Guiding Teacher at the Insight Meditation Society and a residential retreat teacher at IMS and Spirit Rock. A meditator since 1999, his practice is rooted in long-term retreat practice and the mettā and vipassanā teachings of the Insight Meditation tradition.    In this episode we talk about: Why mindfulness alone is not enough How mettā is part of four related mental skills called the Brahma Viharas The story of how and why the Buddha (according to the legend) invented mettā practice The role and practice of generosity A year long experiment that Devin ran in mettā and danā And lastly, how these practices can help us both on and off the cushion   This episode originally aired on July 31st, 2024.   Get the 10% with Dan Harris app here Sign up for Dan's free newsletter here Follow Dan on social: Instagram, TikTok Subscribe to our YouTube Channel Thanks to our sponsors:  LinkedIn:  Spend $250 on your first campaign on LinkedIn ads and get a $250 credit for the next one. Just go to linkedin.com/happier. Warby Parker: Our listeners get 15% off plus free shipping when they buy two or more pairs of prescription glasses at WarbyParker.com/HAPPIER — using our link helps support the show. To advertise on the show, contact sales@advertisecast.com or visit https://advertising.libsyn.com/10HappierwithDanHarris    

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center)

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center)

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center)

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center)

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center)

Practical advice from a straight-talking former criminal and occasionally profane Dharma teacher.  Vinny Ferarro has practiced insight meditation (vipassanā) since the mid-90s. He's the Guiding Teacher of the Big Heart City Sangha in San Francisco and has led a weekly sitting group for almost two decades. As a fully empowered Dharma Teacher through Spirit Rock/IMS, he has taught residential retreats at various centers and currently leads Spirit Rock's Year to Live course.  This episode originally dropped in May of 2024, but we're re-posting it because it was one of our most successful episodes.  In this episode we talk about: Alignment Vinny's concept of "flashing your basic goodness" Noting practice The deep satisfaction in not seeking satisfaction Redirecting awareness Being an "empathetic witness" for yourself When to opt for distraction Not taking what's not yours  Vinny's ancestor practice What is the connection between seeing our family patterns and not taking what is not ours?   How loyal have we been to our suffering? Related Episodes: How To Be Okay No Matter What | Kamala Masters Vitamin E: How To Cultivate Equanimity Amidst Political Chaos | Roshi Joan Halifax Non-Preachy Ethics | Jozen Tamori Gibson Get the 10% with Dan Harris app here Sign up for Dan's free newsletter here Follow Dan on social: Instagram, TikTok Subscribe to our YouTube Channel   Thanks to our sponsors:  LinkedIn:  Spend $250 on your first campaign on LinkedIn ads and get a $250 credit for the next one. Just go to linkedin.com/happier. Tonal:   Go to tonal.com and use the promo code Happier for $200 off your purchase. Cozy Earth: Go to cozyearth.com/HARRIS for up to 20% off! To advertise on the show, contact sales@advertisecast.com or visit https://advertising.libsyn.com/10HappierwithDanHarris

We explore how contemplative practice and bold artistic expression strengthen each other, using Anne Cushman's story to map a path from silence to color and back again. Six shared principles offer practical tools to make space, feel more, and create with less fear.• the roller skating dream as a symbol of inner conflict between sage and trickster• how Spirit Rock integrated silence with painting, writing, and movement• creativity as reclamation over talent, and process-focused training• mindfulness boosting divergent thinking, focus, and resilience• six principles: space, body, emotions, sacred time, golden thread, letting go• simple tactics for tiny sacred windows and playful practice• how to approach scary material with gentle bravery and protection• presence as the common thread that unites art and awakening• next steps: process-first teachers, online workshops with Anne CushmanAnd if this conversation has sparked something in you and you're looking for practical next steps, Ann Cushman actually teaches online. She does half day and day-long events combining meditation, writing, movement.www.AnneCushman.comSupport the showCertify To Teach Mindfulness: Certify.MindfulnessExercises.com Email: Sean@MindfulnessExercises.com Mindfulness Exercises with Sean Fargo is a practical, grounded mindfulness podcast for people who want meditation to actually help in real life. Hosted by Sean Fargo — a former Buddhist monk, mindfulness teacher, and founder of MindfulnessExercises.com — this podcast explores how mindfulness can support mental health, emotional regulation, trauma sensitivity, chronic pain, leadership, creativity, and meaningful work. Each episode offers a mix of: Practical mindfulness and meditation teachings Conversations with respected meditation teachers, clinicians, authors, and researchers Real-world insights for therapists, coaches, yoga teachers, educators, and caregivers Gentle reflections for anyone navigating stress, anxiety, burnout, grief, or change If you're interested in: Mindfulness meditation for everyday life Trauma-sensitive and compassion-based practices Teaching mindfulness in an authentic, non-performative way Deepening your own practice while supporting others …you're in the right place. Learn more at MindfulnessExercises.com.

This talk was recorded at the Radical Kindness New Year's Retreat 12/28/25 - 1/2/26 in Bay St. Louis, MS.Mikey Noechel offers the 2nd morning instructions on metta or loving kindness meditation. Enjoy! Wild Heart Meditation Center in a non-profit Buddhist community based in Nashville, TN. https://www.wildheartmeditationcenter.orgDONATE: If you feel moved to support WHMC financially please visit:https://www.wildheartmeditationcenter.org/donateFollow Us on Socials!Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WildHeartNashville/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wildheartnashville/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@wildheartmeditation

Inspired by a quote from Spirit Rock run by Jack Kornfield:"May our hearts stay open in the storm.May our voices speak for what is just.May our hands extend in generousity.May our presence be a refuge."It's tough times out there. Really tough. I don't know one person who isn't overwhelmed. Heartbroken. Angry. Afraid.This podcast is to remind each of us what we can do, even when we feel powerless. It's about how energy works. How much of an impact we can have when we learn how to keep our hearts open, and become a refuge, and emit a frequency and love out into the world.A refuge for others, and also for ourselves. A safe space to pray. To love. To anchor. To remember who we are. To remember the power that we have.You are a soul with a frequency of truth, love, peace, and connection.We have to connect there and use the power that we have for good. Thanks for listening! Follow leah on IG, FB & TK @leahthemodernsage for more!

What if “liberation” isn't an escape from the world's pain, but the most grounded way to meet it?In Part 2, Ian Challis continues his exploration of the journey from samsara (the spinning wheel of greed, hatred, and delusion) toward nibbāna—not as a far-off trophy, but as an orientation we can practice right here.He frames refuge (Buddha, Dharma, Sangha) as a real-time source of strength rather than a hiding place: community, ethics, and wise effort become the “places we gather power” when life feels dystopian or overwhelming. He leans on the bodhisattva spirit—awakening that's incomplete unless it includes others—and points out that freedom isn't withdrawal; it's relationship, mutuality, and shared responsibility. Ian also makes liberation practical and strangely familiar: most people already know its taste. He calls these moments “free samples”—brief flashes when the mind isn't clinging (maybe in nature, art, a quiet walk, or simply watching the breath). The practice is to study what's present and absent in those moments, and to lean into the “via negativa” of the Dharma—freedom revealed by letting go. Along the way, he offers a handful of memorable handles for the path:“Letting go” scales: let go a little → a little peace; a lot → a lot of peace; completely → complete freedom (Ajahn Chah).A Marie Kondo test for the mind: if a thought, habit, or story doesn't support the wholesome, can it be released? (Although it's easier with closets than with resentment.)Five grounding views for hard times: trust the path, trust one's capacity, remember support/lineage, hold that all beings deserve compassion (including oneself), and remember that actions matter.A deeper inquiry beneath “the heart wants what it wants”: through the five aggregates, Ian points to how the survival-driven “I-making” process can run the show—until practice begins to dissolve the hard sense of “me,” revealing a deeper heart that longs for connection and true freedom. He closes by treating nibbāna with humility and faith—something the Buddha described beyond ordinary categories—and reminds listeners that the work is gradual: many small acts of integrity, mindfulness, and wisdom that keep turning the wheel toward stillness.______________Ian Challis is a student and teacher in the Insight Tradition of Buddhism. He is a teacher, founding member, and past guiding teacher of Insight Community of the Desert in Palm Springs.Ayya Khema, Leigh Brasington, Narayan Liebenson, Larry Yang, and Arinna Weisman are key teachers who have inspired and illuminated his practice.Serving Queer community is a passion. 2025 marks his co-teaching of the 9th annual Queer retreat at Dhamma Dena Retreat Center with Leslie Booker. He is also a qualified teacher of MBSR, a graduate of Spirit Rock's Community Dharma Leader teacher training, and was formally invited by Arinna Weisman to teach in the lineage of U Ba Khin and Ruth Denison.Find him at ianchallis.com ______________ To support our efforts to share these talks with LGBTQIA audiences worldwide, please visit https://gaybuddhist.org/There you can: Donate Learn how to participate live Find our schedule of upcoming speakers Join our mailing list or discussion forum Enjoy over 900 recorded talks dating back to 1995 CREDITSAudio Production: George HubbardProducer: Tom BrueinMusic/Logo/Artwork: Derek Lassiter

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center)

What does it take to finally say, “I've had enough of being swept around by life,” and begin walking a path toward real freedom?Ian Challis invites us to first take a grounded look at samsara—the restless, exhausting cycle of craving, aversion, and wandering that shapes so much of human experience.Ian describes samsara not as a moral failing but as the natural turbulence of being human: the push and pull of desire, fear, habit, and cultural conditioning. Through vivid stories—including a moment of panic while snorkeling—he illustrates how easily we're carried by currents stronger than our intentions, and how transformative it can be to “put our feet down” and reclaim stability. Drawing on the Buddha's teachings, he explains samsara as the momentum of ignorance and craving, continually renewed by cultural messages of scarcity, competition, and “if only.” Ian emphasizes that these forces operate both internally and collectively, and that recognizing them is the beginning of wise view—the first step on the Noble Eightfold Path.So how do we respond once we do see samsara clearly? He describes saṁvega, the spiritual urgency that arises when the heart recognizes suffering and refuses to keep passing it along—whether through inherited family patterns, cultural conditioning, or our own unconscious habits. From this urgency comes a shift in view: a willingness to let go of unhelpful opinions, identities, and stories that keep the wheel spinning. Ian shares the five views he's chosen to center on this year—each beginning with “I trust…”—as a way of simplifying and clarifying his path:I trust the dharma.I trust myself enough to walk this path.I trust that I don't walk it alone.I trust that every human being is worthy of kindness and safety.I trust that my actions matter.He closes by reminding us that samsara isn't just a cosmic cycle—it's the moment‑to‑moment drift into fear, craving, outrage, or despair. Each time we notice and return to center, the wheel loses momentum. Each time we “put our feet down,” we move a little closer to freedom.______________Ian Challis is a student and teacher in the Insight Tradition of Buddhism. He is a teacher, founding member, and past guiding teacher of Insight Community of the Desert in Palm Springs.Ayya Khema, Leigh Brasington, Narayan Liebenson, Larry Yang, and Arinna Weisman are key teachers who have inspired and illuminated his practice.Serving Queer community is a passion. 2025 marks his co-teaching of the 9th annual Queer retreat at Dhamma Dena Retreat Center with Leslie Booker. He is also a qualified teacher of MBSR, a graduate of Spirit Rock's Community Dharma Leader teacher training, and was formally invited by Arinna Weisman to teach in the lineage of U Ba Khin and Ruth Denison.Find him at ianchallis.com ______________ To support our efforts to share these talks with LGBTQIA audiences worldwide, please visit https://gaybuddhist.org/There you can: Donate Learn how to participate live Find our schedule of upcoming speakers Join our mailing list or discussion forum Enjoy over 900 recorded talks dating back to 1995 CREDITSAudio Production: George HubbardProducer: Tom BrueinMusic/Logo/Artwork: Derek Lassiter

A couch, a non-alcoholic hazy IPA, and a confession: leaving the monastery wasn't just about tacos and rules—it was about hugging family again and answering a call to serve a world on edge. What followed is a surprising arc from Spirit Rock to healthcare to a teacher training program that's now helping seed mindfulness across the Environmental Protection Agency and beyond.We walk through the real reasons mindfulness belongs inside complex institutions: not as a perk, but as a skills-based response to stress, climate anxiety, and high-stakes decision-making. You'll hear how EPA leaders enrolled in our certification, why they're inviting more colleagues, and what a mindful federal initiative could look like across agencies like the Forest Service, Housing, and even the military. The science is clear—reduced stress and anxiety, better communication, stronger resilience—and the stories show how a short practice can change a meeting, a policy conversation, or a homecoming after work.This is a grounded look at scaling compassion without losing integrity. We talk about attention as a shared resource, how training trainers multiplies impact, and why adopting mindfulness at work naturally shifts habits at home: how we speak, what we buy and eat, and how we show up for people we love. If you care about mental health, leadership, and a more humane approach to public service, you'll find both practical tools and a dose of hope.If this resonates, subscribe, share the episode with someone who needs it, and leave a review with one way you'll plant a mindful seed this week. Your practice can be the spark that lights the next room.Support the showAdd your 5‑star review — this really helps others find us. Certify To Teach Mindfulness: Certify.MindfulnessExercises.com Email: Sean@MindfulnessExercises.comAbout the Podcast Mindfulness Exercises with Sean Fargo is a practical, grounded mindfulness podcast for people who want meditation to actually help in real life. Hosted by Sean Fargo — a former Buddhist monk, mindfulness teacher, and founder of MindfulnessExercises.com — this podcast explores how mindfulness can support mental health, emotional regulation, trauma sensitivity, chronic pain, leadership, creativity, and meaningful work. Each episode offers a mix of: Practical mindfulness and meditation teachings Conversations with respected teachers, clinicians, authors, and researchers Real-world insights for therapists, coaches, yoga teachers, educators, and caregivers Gentle reflections for anyone navigating stress, anxiety, burnout, grief, or change Rather than chasing peak experiences or spiritual bypassing, this podcast emphasizes embodied practice, ethical teaching, and mindfulness that meets people where they are—messy, human, and alive. If you're interested in: Mindfulness meditation for everyday life Trauma-sensitive and co...

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center) Moving from body to choiceless attention to awarenenss of awareness, we consider the Bahiya Sutta and how it points to the not-self nature of things.

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center) Drawing from the Culasunyatta Sutta and the teaching to Bahiya, this talk explores how the entire Buddhist path unfolds within the immediacy of our sensory experience. Emptiness is revealed not as a metaphysical abstraction but as the progressive letting go of what distracts us from what is peaceful—a movement from palace to forest to space to freedom itself. The whole world exists within this fathom-long body and its six sense doors. Liberation happens here, in the seen, heard, sensed, and cognized—not through traveling to some distant realm, but through radical presence with what is. When we meet each moment of contact with the quality of spiritual friendship, recognizing the loving awareness we already are, even the difficult journey over open ocean becomes workable. We learn to fly between the lives we have and the lives we imagine, without the extra burden of complaint, held by the spaciousness of mind itself.

Buddhist strategies for taming that nagging voice in your head. Ofosu Jones-Quartey, a meditation teacher, author, and musician hailing from the Washington DC area, brings over 17 years of experience in sharing mindfulness, meditation and self-compassion practices with the world. Holding a bachelor's degree from American University and certified by the Mindfulness Meditation Teacher Certification Program, Ofosu is a graduate of the Teleos Coaching Institute and is the male voice on the Balance meditation app, reaching over 10 million subscribers.  Ofosu leads meditation classes and retreats nationwide, having taught and led retreats at the Insight Meditation Community of Washington, The Insight Meditation Society, Spirit Rock, Brooklyn Zen Center, Cleveland Insight, Inward Bound Mindfulness and more. As an accomplished hip hop artist under the name "Born I," Ofosu released the mindfulness-themed album "In This Moment" in 2021. Born I's most recent album, "Komorebi" (2025), has been hailed by listeners as "a missing piece in hip-hop," praised for its meditative flow and spiritual depth. The companion book, "Lyrical Dharma: Hip-Hop as Mindfulness" (Parallax Press), arrives with a foreword by Pulitzer Prize winner Alice Walker, further cementing Born I as a unique voice at the intersection of art and contemplative practice. Beyond music, Ofosu is an author, releasing his self-published children's book "You Are Enough" in 2020 and "Love Your Amazing Self" via Storey Publishing in 2022. He lives in Rockville, Maryland, with his wife and four children. In this episode we talk about: The relationship between self-compassion and a successful meditation practice All the reasons people resist self-compassion, and his rebuttals Whether self-compassion is selfish How to do self-compassion off the cushion, including practices like journaling, written reminders, establishing accountability partners, and simple questions you can drop into your mind when all else fails How to do self-compassion on the cushion, including practices like body scans, metta, and a check-in practice you can use at the very start of your sits And how to teach self-compassion to children   This episode was first aired in April 2024. Related Episodes: Think You Suck at Meditation? This Conversation Could Help. | Ofosu Jones-Quartey   Get the 10% with Dan Harris app here Sign up for Dan's free newsletter 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  

This is the last episode in the How of Happiness Series that follows the 12 exercises outlined in The How of Happiness by Dr. Sonja LyubomirskyThis episodes explores how meditation and physical activity can boost happiness and well-being. You'll learn how meditation trains the mind for calm and awareness, how exercise can be as effective as medication for improving mood, and why both practices strengthen emotional resilience. Discover simple, practical ways to integrate mindfulness and movement into your daily routine to feel more centered, focused, and fulfilled. Resources Mentioned:The How of Happiness by Sonja LyubomirskyMeditation apps: Headspace, Calm, Insight Timer, Ten Percent HappierMeditation centers: InsightLA, Spirit Rock, The Mindfulness CenterStudies specifically mentioned:Kjaer TW, Bertelsen C, Piccini P, Brooks D, Alving J, Lou HC. Increased dopamine tone during meditation-induced change of consciousness. Brain Res Cogn Brain Res. 2002 Apr;13(2):255-9. doi: 10.1016/s0926-6410(01)00106-9. PMID: 11958969.Blumenthal, J.A., Babyak, M.A., Moore, K.A., Craighead, W.E., Herman, S., Khatri, P., … Krishnan, K.R.R. (1999). Effects of Exercise Training on Older Patients With Major Depression: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Archives of Internal Medicine, 159(19), 2349–2356.https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/fullarticle/485159Please subscribe and leave a review on your favorite Podcasting platform. Get 12 Financial Mistakes that Keep Physicians from Building Wealth at https://www.growyourwealthymindset.com/12financialmistakes If you want to start your path to financial freedom, start with the Financial Freedom Workbook. Download your free copy today at https://www.GrowYourWealthyMindset.com/fiworkbook Dr. Elisa Chiang is a physician and money coach who helps other doctors reach their financial goals by mastering their money mindset through personalized 1:1 coaching . You can learn more about Elisa at her website or follow her on social media. Website: https://ww.GrowYourWealthyMindset.com Instagram https://www.instagram.com/GrowYourWealthyMindset Facebook https://www.facebook.com/ElisaChiang https://www.facebook.com/GrowYourWealthyMindset YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/WealthyMindsetMD Linked In: www.linkedin.com/in/ElisaChiang Disclaimer: The content provided in the Grow Your Wealthy Mind...

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center) This recording has a 10 minute bowing practice followed by all the chants and matras that were practiced over the retreat.

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center) This recording has a 10 minute bowing practice followed by all the chants and matras that were practiced over the retreat.

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center) This recording has a 10 minute bowing practice followed by all the chants and matras that were practiced over the retreat.

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center)

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center) When we offer mettā to ourselves, we're not trying to transform our experience into unconditional self-love—we're learning to love the parts of ourselves that don't want to love us back. This practice invites us to recognize all our parts because when we can love the fragmented parts of ourselves, we begin to see ourselves as sacred beings, and in knowing ourselves deeply, we come to know Kuan Yin.

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center) When we offer mettā to ourselves, we're not trying to transform our experience into unconditional self-love—we're learning to love the parts of ourselves that don't want to love us back. This practice invites us to recognize all our parts because when we can love the fragmented parts of ourselves, we begin to see ourselves as sacred beings, and in knowing ourselves deeply, we come to know Kuan Yin.

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center)

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center)

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center) When we offer mettā to ourselves, we're not trying to transform our experience into unconditional self-love—we're learning to love the parts of ourselves that don't want to love us back. This practice invites us to recognize all our parts because when we can love the fragmented parts of ourselves, we begin to see ourselves as sacred beings, and in knowing ourselves deeply, we come to know Kuan Yin.

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center)

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center)

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center)

Anne Cushman explores how mindfulness and creativity feed each other through guided practices, research insights, and lived stories. We trade perfection for presence, play with color and movement, and learn to follow the thread of aliveness into honest work.• opening space through breath and softening• honoring life as inherently creative• reconciling the teacher and the artist selves• lessons from Spirit Rock creativity retreats• research on focus, divergence and resilience• embodiment as the foundation for art• quick sensory writing to prime awareness• emotions as fuel and material for making• movement meditation to trust inner impulse• lowering standards to escape perfectionism• visiting scary edges with care and consent• mandala drawing practice within a circle• “I am” free writing to outrun the critic• process over product as a creative ethicFind her at AnneCushman.com. She oftens lead half day and day longs online, which combine meditation and creative writing and movementSupport the showCertify To Teach Mindfulness & Meditation Since 2015, we've trained over 2,000 people to teach mindfulness in healthcare, business, education, yoga, sports teams, and the U.S. Government. ⁠⁠⁠⁠MindfulnessExercises.com/certify⁠⁠⁠⁠ Certify At Your Own Pace: Just complete 40 hours of self-paced meditation + online workbook completion with lifetime access to personalized support. Deepen Your Own Mindful Presence: Whatever your starting place is, we will help you deepen your own embodied, experiential understanding. Teach With Integrity & Authenticity: We help you find your unique voice to make mindfulness relevant and practical for your own students or clients. Receive International Accreditation: Trusted by Fortune 500 companies, international healthcare centers, coaching schools, and the U.S. Government. Boost Your Career: Use our templates to quickly form your own paid mindfulness courses, workshops, keynotes or coaching packages. ⁠⁠⁠⁠MindfulnessExercises.com/certify⁠⁠⁠⁠

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center) The talk explores the sutta, The Advice to Anathapindika. The sutta reveals how Anathapindika bestowed the teachings of non-clinging and letting to those of us who ar householders. The talk concludes with a current story of a near death experience that embodies the realization of the goodness of the dharma.

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center) The talk explores the sutta, The Advice to Anathapindika. The sutta reveals how Anathapindika bestowed the teachings of non-clinging and letting to those of us who ar householders. The talk concludes with a current story of a near death experience that embodies the realization of the goodness of the dharma.

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center) After a brief general account of the three ways of liberating insight, we look at each of the three--insights into impermanence, dukkha, and not-self--with a longer treatment of insight into not-self. There is an emphasis especially on how we practice in order to come to these insights. We close with a passage from Ajahn Chah pointing to the unity of developing samadhi and cultivating insight. The talk is followed by discussion.

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center) Exploring the Normalcy of Death in Buddhism. Looking at the many ways Buddhism understands death: Death of the body; The life and death of each moment; Becoming harmonious with Death as part of Life; Death as a Doorway to the Deathless,

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center) We review the nature of samadhi, how it is a natural quality that surfaces in many human experiences, and its importance in meditation (and the teachings of the Buddha). We briefly examine the five jhanic factors that point to how samadhi deepens. We also look at several of the main challenges that arise as we practice to develop samadhi.

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center)

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center)

When seen with clarity, the dharma sheds light on nearly every aspect of our daily lives. In this highly engaging talk, Eve Decker explores in plain language how Buddhist teachings can help us deal with our daily struggles. By highlighting the intersection of Buddhist wisdom and neuroscience, she shows how ancient teachings align with modern psychological frameworks.Eve emphasizes that the Buddha was, in many ways, a master psychologist—offering insights into suffering, habit formation, and emotional regulation that contemporary science continues to affirm. Eve draws on the work of Dr. Rick Hanson and Dr. Daniel Siegel to illustrate how mindfulness and compassion practices can rewire the brain, and she highlights how Buddhist teachings on awareness, intention, and ethical living are echoed in therapeutic models like Internal Family Systems (IFS), Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), and Polyvagal Theory.Eve also breaks down several key concepts that bridge Dharma and psychology:Neuroplasticity – the brain's ability to change through repeated practice, supporting the Buddhist emphasis on intentional cultivation.Negativity bias – our tendency to focus on threats, which mindfulness helps balance by training attention toward wholesome states.Self-directed neuroplasticity – consciously reinforcing positive traits like gratitude and kindness, a core aim of both Dharma and CBT.Internal Family Systems (IFS) – recognizing and compassionately working with different “parts” of ourselves, much like Buddhist teachings on non-self and multiplicity of mind.Polyvagal Theory – understanding how safety and connection regulate our nervous system, aligning with the Buddhist emphasis on compassion and relational presence.The role of repetition – how consistent practice strengthens beneficial traits, whether through meditation or therapeutic exercises.Throughout the talk, Eve reminds us that transformation is possible—not through force, but through gentle, repeated attention. With warmth and clarity, she shows how both science and spirituality point toward the same truth: we can train the mind toward freedom.______________Eve Decker has been practicing Insight Meditation since 1991, and has taught groups, daylongs, and short retreats since 2006, particularly at Spirit Rock, the East Bay Meditation Center, and elsewhere in the Bay Area. She is a graduate of UC Berkeley and of Spirit Rock's Path of Engagement and Community Dharma Leader training programs, and has been trained in the Hakomi approach to body-based psychotherapy. Eve is also a singer/songwriter who has combined the power of music and dharma practice. Her most recent CDs are “In: Chants of Mindfulness & Compassion,” and “Awakening Joy - The Music.”Find her at EveDecker.com ______________ To support our efforts to share these talks with LGBTQIA audiences worldwide, please visit https://gaybuddhist.org/There you can: Donate Learn how to participate live Find our schedule of upcoming speakers Join our mailing list or discussion forum Enjoy many hundreds of these recorded talks dating back to 1996 CREDITSAudio Engineer: George HubbardProducer: Tom BrueinMusic/Logo/Artwork: Derek Lassiter

In this conversation with Meditation teacher Nolitha Tsengiwe, we explore how silence, presence, and practice can help us meet the joy and impermanence of life.Nolitha Tsengiwe is a Dharma teacher and board member at Dharmagiri Retreat Center in South Africa, which was founded by Kittisaro and Thanissara Weinberg. She has practiced since 1997 under Kittisaro and Thanissara, who are of Ajahn Chah's lineage. In her first retreat with these beloved teachers, she discovered silence as a refuge and has never looked back. Nolitha completed the Community Dharma Leadership Program (CDL4) at Spirit Rock in 2014 and is a graduate of the IMS teacher training program from 2017 to 2021. Nolitha is a Psychologist and is trained in Karuna (Core process psychotherapy based on Buddhist principles) and Somatic Experiencing (SE). Has been a leadership development consultant and executive coach for over 20 years. She is a mother and teaches Biodanza (dance originated by Rolando Toro)Resource Links:Learn more about Nolitha and her work:Website: couragetolead.co.zaMore from David - book releases, workshops, mindfulness talks, upcoming events, and more:Website: Davidkeplingerpoetry.comInstagram: @DavidKeplingerPoetrySubstack: Another Shore with David KeplingerSubstack Author Page: https://substack.com/@davidkeplingerMore from Shawn - free audio meditations, upcoming events, retreats, monthly essays, yoga classes, and music alchemy:Website: Shawnparell.comInstagram: @ShawnParellSubstack: The Guest HouseSubstack Author Page: https://substack.com/@shawnparellTogether, we're being human in an era of radical change. Your presence here matters. Bless our work algorithmically with your

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center)

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center) This guided meditation starts with brief talk on equanimity. Followed by a guided meditation.

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center) This guided meditation lead you through a series of practices to establish yourself as you enter into formal meditation.

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center) When met with love and awareness, change opens the path to liberation through letting go

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center) We begin with a review of how the Buddha saw "ignorance" of the basic nature of things (not so much of facts or information) as the basic problem of human life; we are as if asleep, caught in dream-like living, and need to "wake up." For the Buddha, we are especially ignorant about impermanence, dukkha (or reactivity--grabbing at the pleasant and pushing away the unpleasant or painful and believing that this is the way to happiness), the nature of the self, and nirvana or awakening. We bring in a brief report of the experience of attending the previous week's EcoDharma retreat at Spirit Rock, emphasizing especially the pervasiveness of a sense of separation--from the earth, other living beings, and each other--and the connection of such sense of separation with our systemic problems. Indigenous teachers at the retreat particularly emphasized living without such separation. The second part of the talk, we focus on the teaching of not-self (anatta), and ways of practicing that deepens our understanding of not-self, as well as how we hold this understanding of pervasive human ignorance with compassion and kindness, including in our responses to the manifestations of ignorance. The talk is followed by discussion.

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center) A talk exploring these two hindrances, our relationship to them, and ways to embrace them as parts of our path

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center) Talk Synopsis: Clearing the Poisons – Greed and Aversion This talk explores how the Buddha's teachings on dukkha and the three unwholesome roots—greed, aversion, and delusion—relate to the common mental obstacles that arise in meditation and daily life. Framed through the lens of the five hindrances, the talk looks closely at how these energies obscure attention and contribute to suffering. The talk includes a practical discussion of temperament—how some of us tend more toward craving, others toward irritation or confusion—and how understanding these patterns can support clarity and compassion. Rather than trying to get rid of these states, the emphasis is on recognizing and relating to them with awareness, in line with the Buddha's instruction to know dukkha and its causes. Grounded in the Four Noble Truths, the talk points toward a path of practice that works with what's difficult—not as a problem to fix, but as a doorway to insight and freedom.

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center) In this session we explore the 4 components of Self-Compassion: mindfulness, kindness, shared humanity, and recognition of our inner goodness. Then we practice Self-Directed Loving Kindness.

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center) This talk, given on the opening night of a retreat for beginners, explores what mindfulness is, some science behind it, helpful attitudes for retreat, including patience and kindness, and ways of supporting yourself on retreat.

Renowned meditation teacher, Joseph Goldstein, shares timeless insights on the mind, suffering, and the heart of why we meditate.This episode is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/insighthour and get on your way to being your best selfIn this episode, Joseph Goldstein offers his perspective on:The many reasons why we meditateHow we all filter our experiences through our own particular conditioning and background Unpacking the Dhammapada's teaching: “Mind is the forerunner of all actions”Using meditation to understand the patterns and nature of our own mindsStrengthening mental stability and inner resilience through practiceCultivating present-moment awareness instead of being swept away by emotionsConsidering what qualities of heart and mind are being cultivated in all that we doA powerful reminder: Don't waste your suffering—transform pain into wisdomDeepening insight into the impermanent nature of all experiencesThe difference between attachment and commitment The Buddhist concept of nonself and freeing our minds from identificationThis recording from Spirit Rock's April 2025 Insight Meditation retreat was originally published on Dharmaseed.“We meditate to come out of confusion, to come out of all our habitual reactions into a space of greater wisdom, of greater clarity. We begin to see much more clearly what actually is going on in our experience rather than being lost in it. We begin to see what it is that's shaping our lives.” – Joseph GoldsteinSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.