Buddhist Geeks

We’re joined this week by one of the pioneers of the socially engaged Buddhist movement, Zen Master Bernie Glassman. Although he grew up in a family that valued social action, after some years of Zen practice he had an experience that amplified his calling to serve those in need. At that point he made a vow to feed all hungers. We speak about the interconnection—and accordingly to Bernie, the inseparability—between contemplative practice and social action.He shares details of many of the projects he has been part of, including the Greystone project in Yonkers, New York, which helped to cut homelessness in that area by three-quarters. He also shares some of the key tenets from the group that he founded, called the Zen Peacemakers. These tenets link together the “not knowing” of spiritual practice with the “loving action” of social engagement, and make it possible for us to turn our spiritual awareness into a vital force for all those in need.Episode Links:Zen Peacemakers ( http://www.zenpeacemakers.org )The Trickster: A Study in American Indian Mythology ( http://bit.ly/bslllz )Instructions to the Cook: A Zen Master’s Lessons in Living a Life That Matters ( http://bit.ly/bwjC4R )See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info. Get full access to Buddhist Geeks at www.buddhistgeeks.org/subscribe

“We always talk about the Sangha as part of the triple gem, but I think it is the least developed part of Buddhism in the West.” – Sumi Loundon KimWe’re joined this week by Sumi Loundon Kim, author of Blue Jean Buddha and The Buddha’s Apprentices, to explore what young people want from spiritual communities. We explore young people’s need for belongingness, their natural spiritual inclination, and the big questions that they are asking.Sumi, who is in her mid-30’s now, gives several suggestions for how Buddhist communities can engage more effectively with a younger population. She points out that though Buddhist communities tend to be somewhat asocial when compared to other communities, there are many things we can be doing to better reach a new generation of seekers. Many of these suggestions are surprisingly obvious, but few are implemented on a large scale in Buddhist communities.Episode Links:Blue Jean Buddha: Voices of Young Buddhists ( http://bit.ly/aiCOoV )The Buddha’s Apprentices: More Voices of Young Buddhists ( http://bit.ly/abRn7U )I Married a Monk ( http://bit.ly/aw2s6K )See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info. Get full access to Buddhist Geeks at www.buddhistgeeks.org/subscribe

We finish up our discussion with spiritual teacher Adyashanti, focusing on several topics relevant to contemporary seekers. We start off by exploring his thoughts on questions of power & hierarchy in the student-teacher relationship. Adya’s approach is to put power back on the student, encouraging them to be their own inner authority from the beginning.We also explore a type of writing meditative inquiry practice that Adyashanti has done, and which he teaches others. He explores how this type of inquiry can be used in conjunction with silent meditation practice to eliminate roadblocks on the spiritual path.This is part 2 of a two-part series. Listen to part 1, Now That’s Zen.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info. Get full access to Buddhist Geeks at www.buddhistgeeks.org/subscribe

We’re joined by spiritual teacher Adyashanti to discuss his 15 years of training with Zen teacher Arvis Joen Justi. He shares details from his initial awakening at 25–where he realized that he was what he was seeking–to the end of the search several years later at 31. It’s at that point that Arvis asked Adyashanti to begin teaching, and as he shares with us, his teaching evolved and changed fairly quickly. He shares how it changed, and how he saw it as a natural evolution of his Zen training, rather than an entirely new form.This is part 1 of a two-part series. Listen to part 2, I’m Not Babysitting Your Ego.Episode Links:Yasutani Hakuun Roshi ( http://www.dharmaweb.org/index.php/Yasutani_Hakuun_Roshi )Soen Nakagawa ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soen_Nakagawa )See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info. Get full access to Buddhist Geeks at www.buddhistgeeks.org/subscribe

Richard Brown–a long time Buddhist and contemplative educator–joins us to share some of the details from his recent involvement in helping the small Buddhist country of Bhutan reform their public education system. Bhutan, which since the early 70’s has had as its main goal to increase Gross National Happiness, wants to create an education system that pulls the best from the West. The main principles they’re holding with this reform, include Contemplation, a Holistic approach, Sustainability, Cultural Integrity, and Critical Intellect. They’re aim is to educate their populace in such a way that they’re prepared for the onslaught of some of the more negative aspects of modernity–including the barrage of information and gross commercialization.Richard was a core part of a recent 5-day workshop aimed at starting to plan the reform of their education system. Richard shares many of the details from that workshop, and shares some of the amazing steps that Bhutan has already taken, as a result, to foster the happiness and well-being of their countries inhabitants.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info. Get full access to Buddhist Geeks at www.buddhistgeeks.org/subscribe

In this episode we’re joined by Soren Gordhamer, long time tech writer, and author of Wisdom 2.0: Ancient Secrets for the Creative and Constantly Connected. Soren often writes for the Huffington Post and Mashable (a social media blog) on the relationship between the inner world with technology and social media. He explores with us some of the potential shadow sides of technology, as well as some of the remedies that can be used in balancing our internal life with our external. He suggests that focusing more consciously on our internal world actually puts us in a position where we can use technology, instead of technology using us.Soren also shares some details on a conference that he’s organizing, which will be bringing together luminaries from both the spiritual and technology worlds. His hope is that a conversation between the two can better answer the question of how we live a life of wisdom in the modern world.Episode Links:Wisdom 2.0: Ancient Secrets for the Creative and Constantly Connected ( http://bit.ly/czcde1 )digital_nation : life on the virtual frontier ( http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/digitalnation/ )4 Steps for Managing Social Media Attention ( http://mashable.com/2010/02/17/social-media-attention/ )The Wisdom 2.0 Conference ( http://www.wisdom2summit.com )See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info. Get full access to Buddhist Geeks at www.buddhistgeeks.org/subscribe

In this episode we wrap up our discussion with meditation teachers Tina Rasmussen and Stephen Snyder, two of the only lay Western teachers authorized to teach the jhana system of Pa Auk Sayadaw. They share the deeper purpose of concentration practice, which isn’t to attain any particular states, but rather is to serve as a purification of the mind stream, what they describe as the “thinning of the me.”They describe the 8 jhanas as states that progressively reach toward the unconditioned, with the 8th jhana, neither perception nor non-perception, as a realm that is as close as you can get to the unconditioned without being itself unconditioned. From there emerges no-thingness, then consciousness, space, and finally form itself. They tell their students that orienting toward the unconditioned, or “the force”, is a type of jedi mind training. And we thought we were geeks!We complete the discussion by exploring the vipassana technique of Pa Auk Sayadaw, which is a powerful way of exploring materiality, mentality, and dependent origination, using the jhana states as a super-powered basis for that investigation. Tina and Stephen share their understanding of this practice, and how it leads to liberating insight and awakening.This is part 2 of a two-part series. Listen to part 1, Mastering the Jhanas.Episode Links:Jhanas Advice ( www.jhanasadvice.com )Practicing the Jhanas: Traditional Concentration Meditation as Presented by the Venerable Pa Auk Sayadaw ( bit.ly/d9ucXu )Knowing and Seeing, by Pa Auk Sayadaw ( www.paauk.org/files/knowing_and_seeing_rev_ed.pdf )See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info. Get full access to Buddhist Geeks at www.buddhistgeeks.org/subscribe

Theravada meditation teachers Tina Rasmussen and Stephen Snyder discuss their training with Pa Auk Sayadaw, including traditional concentration practices. They explain the distinctions between momentary, access, and absorption concentration, emphasizing benefits of purifying the mind. They share insights on daily practice, mindfulness, and detaching from suffering.

This week we share a public talk given by Integral spirituality teacher Terry Patten and Vajrayana teacher Hokai Sobol, on the question of whether traditional Dharma can (or can not) help us turn the corner in a high-speed world. The talk was given in 2009 at the Boulder Integral Center, and was hosted by Buddhist Geeks. A description from the event:In an imbalanced, accelerating world-in-crisis we face problems that cannot be solved, as Einstein famously said, “from the same level of consciousness that created them.” Many contemporary practitioners have turned to the Dharma as a source of that higher consciousness. But traditionally, the path was described as the way to awaken from the dream of human life, not to improve it. The traditions saw that as futile. But today, we no longer see life as an endless cycle.We have an evolutionary view of ourselves and even of our spirituality. And we have seen the folly of “bypassing” our critical life challenges in an attempt to be “spiritual.” How does the wisdom and clarity of ancient Dharma have relevance and meaning in the midst of contemporary evolutionary challenges? How can spiritual insight and illumination empower us to more effectively meet the emerging challenges of our time?Episode Links:Andrew Cohen ( http://www.andrewcohen.org )The Evolution of God ( http://bit.ly/9IlIpB )Integral Heart ( http://www.integralheart.com )See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info. Get full access to Buddhist Geeks at www.buddhistgeeks.org/subscribe

James Zito is a Buddhist film-maker, and the director of a newly released documentary on the history of Zen Buddhism, Inquiry Into the Great Matter. James joins us to discuss his new film, focusing primarily on what he learned while making the film. He shares some specifics on the lives of the famous Zen masters, Daito Kokushi and Ikkyu Sojun. While quite different, each masters reflected very important aspects of Zen Buddhism.We conclude our discussion, exploring the state of Zen in Japan today, which compared to times in the past several hundred years, has declined greatly. Will traditional Japanese Zen be able to exist in a hyper-modern Japan, and as it spreads across the world?Episode Links:Inquiry into the Great Matter: A History of Zen Buddhism ( http://historyofzendvd.com )Vajra Video ( http://www.vajravideo.com )See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info. Get full access to Buddhist Geeks at www.buddhistgeeks.org/subscribe