In this book, Kaira Jewel Lingo provides accessible advice on navigating life's challenges, including change, loss, and disruption. Drawing on Buddhist teachings, she offers ten concise chapters with essential teachings and meditations to help readers develop ease, presence, and self-compassion. The book is designed to support readers in releasing fear and doubt, and in cultivating wisdom, resilience, and balance in the face of global and personal disruptions.
Healing Our Way Home is a collaborative work by three Black women teachers in the Plum Village tradition. The book delves into various aspects of life, including family, relationships, loneliness, intimacy, politics, and self-care, using embodied mindfulness practices. It aims to support healing from white supremacy, internalized racial oppression, and social and cultural conditioning, leading to a sense of belonging and abiding joy. The authors share their personal narratives and the timeless teachings of the Dharma to guide readers towards liberation and connection with their ancestors.
In this book, Alan Watts draws on Eastern philosophy and religion to argue that true security and peace can only be achieved by understanding and embracing the impermanence and insecurity of life. He critiques the modern quest for security and certainty, highlighting the futility of chasing moving goalposts such as financial success, stability, or escape from pain. Watts emphasizes the importance of living in the present moment, letting go of the past and future, and accepting the uncertainty of life to find true freedom and fulfillment.
Joseph Goldstein's works typically explore mindfulness and Buddhist teachings, offering practical guides to cultivating awareness and understanding in daily life. His books often provide insights into the nature of suffering and the path to liberation through mindfulness practices.
Planting Seeds offers a comprehensive approach to mindfulness for children, providing activities such as mindful breathing, walking, and meditation. These practices aim to relieve stress, improve concentration, and foster compassion in young minds. The book includes a CD with guided meditations and songs to enhance the learning experience.
New episodes come out every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for free, with 1-week early access for Wondery+ subscribers.
We all know that change is inevitable and impermanence is non-negotiable. But somehow it can feel surprising, maybe even wrong, when we personally hit turbulence. The Buddha had a lot to say about this, and so does our guest.
Kaira Jewel Lingo is a Dharma teacher who has a lifelong interest in blending spirituality and meditation with social justice. Having grown up in an ecumenical Christian community where families practiced a new kind of monasticism and worked with the poor, at the age of twenty-five she entered a Buddhist monastery in the Plum Village tradition and spent fifteen years living as a nun under the guidance of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh. She received Lamp Transmission from Thich Nhat Hanh and became a Zen teacher in 2007, and is also a teacher in the Vipassana Insight lineage through Spirit Rock Meditation Center. Today she sees her work as a continuation of the Engaged Buddhism developed by Thich Nhat Hanh as well as the work of her parents, inspired by their stories and her dad’s work with Martin Luther King Jr. on desegregating the South.
In addition to writing We Were Made for These Times: Skilfully Moving through Change, Loss and Disruption, she is also the editor of Thich Nhat Hanh’s Planting Seeds: Practicing Mindfulness with Children. Now based in New York, she teaches and leads retreats internationally, provides spiritual mentoring, and interweaves art, play, nature, racial and earth justice, and embodied mindfulness practice in her teaching. She especially feels called to share the Dharma with Black, Indigenous, and People of Color, as well as activists, educators, youth, artists, and families. Her newest book, co-written with Marisela B. Gomez and Valerie Brown, is Healing Our Way Home: Black Buddhist Teachings on Ancestors, Joy, and Liberation.
In this episode we talk about:
- waking up to what’s happening right now
- trusting the unknown (easier said than done)
- A Buddhist list called the five remembrances
- how gratitude helps us in times of disruption
- And accepting what is (and why this is different from resignation or passivity)
Please note: There are brief mentions of domestic violence, abuse, the suffering of refugees, and war in this episode.
Related Episodes:
3 Buddhist Strategies for When the News is Overwhelming | Kaira Jewel Lingo
How to Keep Your Relationships On the Rails | Kaira Jewel Lingo
Sign up for Dan’s weekly newsletter here
Follow Dan on social: Instagram, TikTok
Ten Percent Happier online bookstore
Subscribe to our YouTube Channel
Our favorite playlists on: Anxiety, Sleep, Relationships, Most Popular Episodes
Full Shownotes: https://www.happierapp.com/podcast/tph/kaira-jewel-lingo-390
Additional Resources:
10% Happier with Dan Harris 
