Duncan Trussell Family Hour 713: David Nichtern
5 snips
Sep 19, 2025 
David Nichtern, a senior Buddhist teacher and founder of Dharma Moon, dives deep into the emotional turmoil following public violence. He and Duncan explore the roots of suffering and the concept of basic goodness amidst chaos. Nichtern emphasizes the importance of acting without anger, challenging listeners to adopt purified motivations. They also discuss the transformative power of daily meditation and how it sharpens discernment. Plus, Nichtern shares insights about meditation teacher training and invites everyone to grow their practice.
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Root Cause: Ignorance And Othering
- David Nichtern frames the root cause of suffering as ignorance: not seeing interdependence.
- He describes three habitual responses that arise from this ignorance: conning, attacking, and canceling.
Pause And Let Heartbreak Penetrate
- Allow heartbreak to penetrate without immediately strategizing a response.
- Pause and feel the pain instead of defending or justifying it.
Compassion Requires Feeling Pain
- Recognizing interdependence can feel more painful because it forces you to feel others' suffering.
- Nichtern argues the path to compassion requires fully experiencing that pain non-dually.
