Contemplify

Hey everyone, welcome to another episode of Contemplify, the basecamp for budding contemplative whose pursuit is to kindle the examined life through conversations with creatives, scholars and practitioners. My guest today is Andrew Hinton, filmmaker and co-director of the sublime Emmy-nominated documentary film, Tashi & the Monk. If you haven’t seen Tashi & the Monk, I can’t recommend it enough. It’s moving, funny, wise and at times heart-breaking. This film follows former Buddhist monk Lobsang (who was trained under the guidance of the Dalai Lama by the by) who created a community of orphaned and neglected kids in the foothills of the Himalayas and a precocious 5-year old, Tashi, who just joined the community and is trying to find her way. I can’t say enough about this film, it brought tears to my eyes and a shot of joy to my soul. Andrew shares the serendipitous story of how he came to meet Lobsang thanks to an email from billionaire Peter Thiel’s foundation, the impact Lobsang and Tashi had on him, and how he got started in filmmaking by interviewing people in the lobby of an apartment building. Andrew Hinton makes beautiful films, and you can see this one, Tashi & the Monk, for free by going to this episode’s shownotes at contemplify.com/andrew. See this film, actually pause what you are doing now and watch it and come back around to this interview later….okay, you’re back, you should also head over to tashiandthemonk.com to find out how you can support this community that Lobsang created and the children bring to life. 

Who is there that can make muddy water clear? But if allowed to remain still, it will gradually become clear of itself. Who is there that can secure a state of absolute repose? But let time go on, and the state of repose will gradually arise.' - Lao Tzu It’s graduation season. It is all too likely that someone in your circle is graduating from an esteemed institution, be it a university or local high school, or kindergarten. And with graduations comes graduation speakers….politicians, celebrities, authors or that one guy who did that one thing. I was trying to imagine who I would like to see give a graduation address that would be a bit more off the beaten path, one that would not cater to a limited view of success or climbing the slick ladder of fool hardy self interest. Bill Murray immediately jumped to mind, Alice Walker came next, then Lao Tzu... Obviously Lao Tzu has not been taking any personal speaking gigs these last 2500 years. But I was smitten with the idea of it, so… in his stead, I will be sharing what Lao Tzu wrote on the doctrine of inaction, what I imagine was a graduate speech a few millenia ago.  

‘This is a magnificent book [The Buddha Walks Into the Office] that just happens to be truly fun to read. Accessible, urgent, and life-changing.’ - Seth Godin Lodro Rinzler is a practitioner and teacher in the Shambhala Buddhist lineage, the founder of the MNDFL meditation studio (which New York Magazine just named the best place to learn meditation in NYC) and the author of numerous books including; Love Hurts: Buddhist Advice for the Heartbroken, the bestselling book, The Buddha Walks into a Bar..., and the book that is the focus of our conversation, The Buddha Walks into an Office.  This episode was sheer delight and will be of significant interest for those seeking to engage a day at the office as place to cultivate fullness of being. We cover such areas as how a conference call can be an opportunity for virtue, how to relate to difficult coworkers and what we can learn from a man named Tilopa who reached full enlightenment in part by assisting a sex worker. Lodro Rinzler is a teacher who is thoughtful as he is funny. You can learn more about Lodro at lodrorinzler.com or connect with social media: Twitter,  Instagram, Facebook, YouTube. (Also check out this article in the New York Times about MNDFL)

This bonus practice episode invites you to ground your being in contemplating the universe. This practice is from Nancy Ellen Abram's book, A God That Could Be Real (pp. 89 - 90)

‘You will find that your beliefs are enriched by reading Abrams’s [A God That Could Be Real]. I am thrilled that we have the creativity and originality that is exhibited in this book, and I recommend it highly to all, religious or secular, believer or atheist, who are ready to explore honestly their understanding of the divine in our beautiful, expanding universe.’ - Desmond Tutu Nancy Ellen Abrams is the author of A God That Could Be Real. This episode will be of special interest for those who wrestled with the science vs. religion debate wondering if there was another perspective out there that transcends the typical binary conversation on this debate. In this episode, Abrams unpacks a new vision of God based on an agreed upon cosmology from today’s leading cosmologists. The implications have the potential to lead this generation of humans to become the ‘esteemed ancestors of the future’. You can learn more about Nancy Ellen Abrams work at nancyellenabrams.com or follow her on Twitter @cosmicsociety.

‘You get the sense that this guy practices what he preaches.  There’s a confidence and peace that inspires.’ - Modern Sage Magazine David Michie is a presenter, mindful safari guide and author, best known for his novel series The Dalai Lama’s Cat.  In our conversation we focused on the importance of meditation through the lens of his book, Hurry Up and Meditate: Your Starter Kit for Inner Peace and Better Health. You will hear David share how to overcome the usual hurdles to starting a meditation practice, how meditation is like going to the gym, the practical benefits he has seen in his own life thanks to his practice and we conclude our conversation with David unpacking the common philosophical statement ‘Know Thyself’ from a non-conceptual perspective. I think you will enjoy the light-hearted yet wise musings of David Michie. To learn more about David’s work, visit davidmichie.com.

Scott Hartley is venture capitalist and author. In 2016 he was a finalist for the Financial Times and McKinsey & Company's Bracken Bower Prize for the best business book proposal by an author under 35. He has served as a Presidential Innovation Fellow at the White House, a Partner at Mohr Davidow Ventures (MDV), and a Venture Partner at Metamorphic Ventures. Prior to venture capital, Scott worked at Google, Facebook, and Harvard’s Berkman Center for Internet & Society. He has been a contributing author at MIT Press, and has written for the Financial Times, Forbes, Inc., Foreign Policy, and the Boston Review. He holds three degrees from Stanford and Columbia, has finished six marathon and Ironman 70.3 triathlons. He is a Term Member at the Council on Foreign Relations, and has visited over 70 countries. You can learn more about Scott's work at fuzzytechie.com and hartleyglobal.com. (from hartleyglobal.com) In our conversation we touch on Scott’s interest in Stoicism, how many leaders of the tech world have backgrounds in philosophy, how the liberal arts prepares one for the many ethical questions facing innovation today and how his father in his late 60s designed an app for the iPhone without any prior technical training. I’m going to do a giveaway for a copy of Scott’s book, The Fuzzy and the Techie: Why The Liberal Arts will Rule the Digital World. If you want to enter the giveaway for a chance to get Scott’s book, all you have to do is rate and review Contemplify on iTunes and then email me at hello@contemplify.com with your biggest takeaway from this conversation. As always, thanks for listening!

"Henry David Thoreau, by no means the most conventional man of his time, lamented on his death bed, “What demon possessed me that I behaved so well.” He would have taken comfort in Holy Fools. They remind us of a deeper sanity that is sometimes hidden beneath apparent lunacy: the treasure of a God-centered life.” - Jim Forest (Praying with Icons) Jim Forest is the author of numerous books, including The Root of War is Fear: Thomas Merton’s Advice to Peacemakers. He serves as International Secretary of the Orthodox Peace Fellowship. In this episode, Jim shares tales about his friendships with Dorothy Day, Thomas Merton, Daniel Berrigan and Thich Nhat Hahn. The gentle straightforward nature of this conversation rallies around a pilgrim way of living in pursuit of embodying love and justice. Jim offers reflective wisdom on marriage, works of mercy, and guidance for those in the earlier stages of life. You can learn more about Jim's work at jimandnancyforest.com.

Russell James Pyle (russelljamespyle.com) is a national touring Musician and Ecopsychologist based in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Russell is one of a kind--an ambient folk troubadour,  Buddhist, ecopsychologist, flyfisherman, avid hiker, comic book enthusiast, and with deep roots in the Pamunkey tribe. You will find that all of these elements flow through Russell and are expressed articulately through his music. We cover a lot of ground, Russell’s shift into a more contemplative way of being, the appearance of ecopsychology on TV, the joy of hiking alone, how the internal landscape is in relationship to the external and how Russell expresses that through music.

“The thing about Alana [Levandoski] is that she’s gifted. She's not just gifted as a musician, which she is, but she’s gifted as a lyricist...she teased these words, kind of like mantras, highly evocative mantras. She strung them together in a developmental expansion. So it was really a stroke of creative insight. It was really lovely how she brought it together." - James Finley (via interview with Ordinary Mystic) After Alana Levandoski attended and graduated from the Living School for Action and Contemplation, Alana experienced a rebirth as an artist, finally opening to a way of integrating her spirituality, her craftsmanship and her lifestyle.  Abiding by a monastic rule inspired by her time living with the Benedictines, Alana and her husband Ian have committed to a life of minimalism and sacred simplicity. Alana released a new album in September 2016.  The album is a series of chants and compositions with spoken word in collaboration with contemplative teacher and clinical psychologist James Finley (author of Merton’s Palace of Nowhere). It is called Sanctuary ~ Exploring the Healing Path with Alana Levandoski and James Finley. (adapted from alanalevandoski.com)