David Loy, Zen teacher and author, joins us to discuss the radical implications of modern narratives on the traditional Buddhist view of the world. David, whose background includes rigorous academic training and Zen practice in the Sanbo Kyodan tradition, puts him squarely in the “scholar-practitioner” camp. And it’s with this dual-background that he shares some perspective on the way that modern narratives, particularly that of science and evolution, are changing our understanding of the Buddhist path of awakening. Or as David more poetically puts it, “the cosmos is waking up in me, as me, through me.” Episode Links: www.davidloy.org The World is Made of Stories ( http://amzn.to/uwc5dE ) A Buddhist Response to the Climate Emergency ( http://amzn.to/w0P7Cb ) Cosmos Intro, Carl Sagan ( http://youtu.be/R7n71pm0K04 ) Inflation (Cosmology) ( http://bit.ly/1S172C4 ) See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We’re joined again by spiritual teacher and author Terry Patten to discuss the multidimensional nature of practice. We speak about the form he teaches, called Integral Life Practice, one that has it’s roots in the work of Sri Aurobindo, Michael Murphy and George Leonard, and according to Terry goes back even to the time of Patanjali and the Buddha. We also go into depth on the topic of practice itself, exploring some of the many phases, or seasons, that a practitioner often experiences, including the honeymoon phase, the plateu, falling from grace, and awakening. This is part 2 of a two-part series. Listen to part 1, The Art of Dharmic Embrace. Episode Links: Integral Spiritual Practice ( http://www.integralspiritualpractice.com ) Integral Life Practice ( http://amzn.to/sTzZSx ) Beyond Awakening ( http://beyondawakeningseries.com ) Integral Yoga ( http://amzn.to/smutBY ) Ken Wilber ( http://www.kenwilber.com ) See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Terry Patten–spiritual teacher and author–joins us to speak about some of the challenging issues involve in teaching and practicing an empowering form of dharma. We begin the conversation by exploring his history with infamous teacher Adi Da. Patten spent many years practicing intimately with Da, and shares his incredible love and appreciation for his guru, while also openly acknowledging the many challenges and paradoxes inherent in his approach. He also speaks about the problem of the “rare specimen” and the ways that incredible teachers inadvertently create “demotional”, as opposed to devotional, cultures around themselves. This topics leads us to then explore the various ways that we, often quite unsuccessfully, work with the areas of money, sexuality, and power. We look at why these forces are so challenging to us as social creatures, and as part of that Terry issues an interesting challenge to the Western Buddhist community. This is part 1 of a two-part series. Listen to part 2, Seasons of Practice. Episode Links: Integral Spiritual Practice ( http://www.integralspiritualpractice.com ) Integral Life Practice ( http://amzn.to/sTzZSx ) Beyond Awakening ( http://beyondawakeningseries.com ) The Knee of Listening ( http://amzn.to/sq5paV ) See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We’re joined by spiritual teacher Andrew Cohen to explore the story of how he came to teach what he calls “evolutionary enlightenment.” Andrew begins by sharing an early spiritual experience, that really set him on the path of seeking. He also shares some of his background with Buddhist meditation, which he began with Joseph Goldstein and the famous Indian teacher Anagarika Munindra-ji. And finally he speaks about the most profound encounter he had with a spiritual master, with the late H.W.L Poonja, a teacher in the non-dual tradition of Advaita Vedanta. From here, he shares how his own thinking evolved, even after being asked to teach by Poonja, into what he refers to as enlightenment within an evolutionary worldview. Episode Links: Evolutionary Enlightenment: A New Path to Spiritual Awakening ( http://amzn.to/niYYuV ) EnlightenNext ( http://www.enlightennext.org ) See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We’re joined again on Buddhist Geeks by one of the most influential figures in the transpersonal psychology movement, Dr. Charley Tart. We cover a huge range of topics in this interview, covering many things related to what he refers to as a “broad scale approach to meditation.” Charley starts off by speaking about several hypnosis and sensory deprivation research studies, wherein the “demand characteristics” of the experiments dramatically affected the results of the research. We explore the implications this might have on the “set” or context that is used to set up meditation practice, and on the results people experience. We also discuss the lack of useful feedback that occurs in meditation communities, and the dramatically lower success rates of meditation communities, when compared to Western educational institutions. Episode Links: An Evidence-Based Spirituality for the 21st Century ( http://bit.ly/1S15WGC ) The Buddhist Atheist ( http://bit.ly/1S15VCy ) The End of Materialism: How Evidence of the Paranormal Is Bringing Science and Spirit Together ( http://amzn.to/py2BQ2 ) See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We’re joined this week by Dr. Kelly McGonigal, to discuss her work at Stanford University, where she is teaching compassion-based practices from the Buddhist tradition, taught in a way that pulls from scientific research and appeals to a secular sensibility. As part of her work with CCARE she shares some of her background with Stanford as well as her long-standing Buddhist practice, which pulls from both the Zen and Tibetan traditions. We close the discussion by exploring some of the difficulties with teaching meditation in a secular context, as well as some of the benefits that come through framing the teachings in scientific and psychological terms. Episode Links: www.kellymcgonigal.com The Willpower Instinct: How Self-Control Works, Why It Matters, and What You Can Do to Get More of It ( http://amzn.to/lcYMyR ) The Stanford Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education ( http://ccare.stanford.edu ) Cheri Huber ( http://www.cherihuber.com ) See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We’re joined again this week by Brown University neuroscience researcher Willougbhy Britton. Willougbhy begins this episode by going into further depth into some of the typical experiences that have been reported during her research into the difficult stages of the contemplative path. She lists out typical changes in cognition, affect (emotion), perception, and other psychological material. She also explores the typical duration of these experiences and explores some of the philosophical and practical ramifications of these stages. Toward the end she also speaks about how she and her colleagues–all part of this emerging group of contemplative scientist hybrids–have come together to create a new contemplative development mapping project. This new generation of scientists are studying the mind, and have immersed themselves not only in scientific methodologies but also in contemplative practice. This is part 2 of a two-part series. Listen to part 1, The Dark Side of Dharma. Episode Links: Willoughby Britton @ Brown University ( http://research.brown.edu/myresearch/Willoughby_Britton ) Britton Lab ( http://www.brittonlab.com ) Mind and Life Institute ( http://www.mindandlife.org ) Cheetah House ( https://cheetahhouse.wordpress.com ) Brown University Contemplative Studies Initiative ( http://bit.ly/rOnze ) See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We’re joined this week by Brown University neuroscience researcher Willoughby Britton. In this episode Dr. Britton shares some of the details of a research project that she’s working on called, “The Difficult Stages of the Contemplative Path.” She goes into the purpose of the research project and also some of the research methods she’s using to establish a helpful subjective phenomenology for these difficult stages. She also speaks about how she has collaborated with both meditation teachers and Buddhist scholars to help determine what the common experiences are for practitioners, and whether they have textual references in the Buddhist canons. And to make matters even more interesting, she shares what her personal experiences have been like, as she’s a committed meditation practitioner herself. This is part 1 of a two-part series. Listen to part 2, The Dark Night Project. Episode Links: Willoughby Britton @ Brown University ( http://research.brown.edu/myresearch/Willoughby_Britton ) Britton Lab ( http://www.brittonlab.com ) Willoughby Britton at the Buddhist Geeks Conference, on the Problem with Meditation ( http://blogs.laweekly.com/stylecouncil/2011/09/buddhist_geeks_considerable_to.php ) Cheetah House ( https://cheetahhouse.wordpress.com ) See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week’s episode comes from the recent Buddhist Geeks conference where Ethan Nichtern, a Buddhist teacher in the Shambhala tradition, speaks about ways in which the internet falls as a an aid in dharma. He uses the Tibetan teaching on co-emergence to frame the simultaneous benefits and harms of the internet, while also speaking about the limitations of a DIY (Do it Yourself) approach, especially when not being open to genuine human contact, with your community or with a teacher. And he argues that in order to go beyond a surface level dharma, which is mostly what he sees online, that one has to stay with things long enough to penetrate their true meaning. He suggests ways that we might do this and presents a very strong argument for not virtualizing Buddhist practice. Episode Links: Ethan Nichtern ( http://www.ethannichtern.com ) The Interdependence Project ( http://www.theidproject.org ) See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

“You can perform neurosurgery on yourself.” – Kenneth Folk This week’s episode comes from the recent Buddhist Geeks Conference, where meditation teacher Kenneth Folk spoke about his three pillars of pragmatic dharma: 1) awakening is possible, 2) I know because it happened to me, and 3) here’s how. Kenneth cycles through each of these pillars, going deeper each time, first exploring what enlightenment is–highlighting the difference between a moment of awakening and enlightenment as human development. He also speaks about why he claims that it happened to him, challenging a taboo in Buddhist culture to not speak about one’s personal experience of enlightenment. He then speaks about attention as the common denominator of all the technologies for awakening, exploring his particular approach to training attention, what he calls the 3-speed transmission. Episode Links: Kenneth Folk Dharma ( http://kennethfolkdharma.com ) The #bgeeks11 Round-Up ( http://www.buddhistgeeks.com/2011/08/the-bgeeks11-round-up/ ) See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.