This episode of the Wisdom Podcast, recorded live as a Wisdom Dharma Chat features special guest Thupten Jinpa and host Daniel Aitken in a discussion about the series Science and Philosophy in the Indian Buddhist Classics series. The two pay special attention to the newest and last volume in the series, Volume 4: Philosophical Topics. Jinpa reads select passages and provides commentary and explanations from the book as well as answers questions from the audience.  They also discuss:  Illusion vs like an illusion; Conventional truth and conventional existence ; How to keep your practice fresh; Difficulties with translating and terminology from Tibetan to English; and more! Video featured in this episode: Science and Philosophy in the Indian Buddhist Classics Trailer Remember to subscribe to the Wisdom Podcast for more great conversations on Buddhism, meditation, and mindfulness. And please give us a 5-star rating in Apple Podcasts if you enjoy our show—it’s a great support to us and it helps other people find the podcast. Thank you! The post Thupten Jinpa: Science and Philosophy in the Indian Buddhist Classics (#168) appeared first on The Wisdom Experience.

Lama Tsomo, spiritual teacher and author, talks about the art of retreat, incorporating meditation into busy schedules, and the four immeasurables. They also discuss the challenges and benefits of retreats in modern life and the combination of ancient wisdom and science in meditation practice. Additionally, they explore the concept of 'us' and 'them,' the importance of following through on teachings, and the practice of dying rehearsal.

This episode of the Wisdom Podcast, recorded live as a Wisdom Dharma Chat, features a special guest, Malcolm Smith. Malcolm Smith has been a student of the Great Perfection teachings since 1992 and graduated in 2009 from Shang Shung Institute’s School of Tibetan Medicine. He is a veteran of the traditional three-year solitary Tibetan Buddhist retreat, a beloved and published translator, and was awarded the Acharya degree from the Sakya Institute in 2004.  In this episode you’ll hear about Malcolm’s new Wisdom Academy course, Dzogchen: Ten Key Terms, and he and host Daniel Aitken dive into the difference in terminology between various other traditions and Dzogchen, including terms such as original purity and ignorance. They go on to discuss Longchepa’s distinction between different states and types of mediation, transmission and direct introduction, and much more. Remember to subscribe to the Wisdom Podcast for more great conversations on Buddhism, meditation, and mindfulness. And please give us a 5-star rating in Apple Podcasts if you enjoy our show—it’s a great support to us and it helps other people find the podcast. Thank you! The post Malcolm Smith: Dzogchen: Ten Key Terms (#166) appeared first on The Wisdom Experience.

This episode of the Wisdom Podcast, recorded live as a Wisdom Dharma Chat, features a special guest, Khandro Kunga Bumma. As a young woman, Khando-la had a vision to leave her homeland of Tibet and go to Nepal. There, she met a hermit sage who told her that she had to meet His Holiness the Dalai Lama. After a difficult journey, including major health challenges, she finally met His Holiness and began serving as a medium of the oracle Tenma. In 2012, Lama Zopa Rinpoche introduced Khandro-la to the Maitripa College community, where she gave one of her first teachings in the West. In this episode you’ll hear Khandro-la and host Daniel Aitken discuss: The connection between virtue and happiness. The subtle natural quality of the mind and interdependence.  The difference between compassion and bodhicitta. The importance of trust in your teacher. A collection of teachings from the fifth Dalai Lama on Madhyamaka texts. Remember to subscribe to the Wisdom Podcast for more great conversations on Buddhism, meditation, and mindfulness. And please give us a 5-star rating in Apple Podcasts if you enjoy our show—it’s a great support to us and it helps other people find the podcast. Thank you! The post Khandro Kunga Bumma: Bodhicitta, Happiness, and Interdependence (#165) appeared first on The Wisdom Experience.

This episode of the Wisdom Podcast, recorded live as a Wisdom Dharma Chat, features the return of special guest Karl Brunnhölzl, MD, PhD. Karl was originally trained as a physician. He received his systematic training in Tibetan language and Buddhist philosophy and practice at the Marpa Institute for Translators, founded by Khenpo Tsultrim Gyamtso Rinpoche, as well as the Nitartha Institute, founded by Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche. Since 1989 he has been a translator and interpreter of Tibetan and English. Karl is a senior teacher and translator in the Nalandabodhi community of Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche, as well as at Nitartha Institute. He is the author and translator of numerous texts. Currently, he is working on the Seventh Karmapa’s compilation of Indian Mahamudra works. In this episode, host Daniel Aitken and Karl discuss: his latest translation work, the third volume in the Sounds of Innate Freedom series,  the four symbolic terms of Saraha,  their connection to the four yogas of mahāmudrā,  and much more!   Remember to subscribe to the Wisdom Podcast for more great conversations on Buddhism, meditation, and mindfulness. And please give us a 5-star rating in Apple Podcasts if you enjoy our show—it’s a great support to us and it helps other people find the podcast. Thank you! The post Karl Brunnhölzl: Sounds of Innate Freedom: Volume 3 (#164) appeared first on The Wisdom Experience.

This episode of the Wisdom Podcast features Geshe Tenzin Namdak. After completing his university studies in Hydrology, Geshe la worked as an environmental researcher in the Netherlands. He began studying Buddhism at Maitreya Institute and was eventually ordained by His Holiness the Dalai Lama before completing the 20-year Geshe degree at Sera Jey monastic university in India, as well as the traditional one-year Vajrayana study program at Gyume Tantric College. Currently, he is the resident teacher at Jamyang Buddhist Centre, London, and teaches worldwide. As part of The Sera Jey Monastic University Translation Department, Geshe la edited and translated Khedrup Je’s commentary on Dharmakīrti’s Seven Treatises on Valid Cognition, published as Freedom Through Correct Knowing. In this episode, host Daniel Aitken and Geshe la discuss:  His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s inspiration and blessings for the Sera Jey Monastic University Translation Department; translation and topics covered in Khedrup Je’s commentary on Dharmakīrti’s Seven Treatises on Valid Cognition, published as Freedom Through Correct Knowing; pedagogy, epistemology, and logic studies in the Geshe curriculum at Sera Jey; the practical application of Buddhist epistemology and logic to the path of enlightenment; Pramānavārttika and the practical purposes of debate in the Tibetan monastic tradition; the Wisdom Academy online course, Freedom Through Correct Knowing; and much more!   Remember to subscribe to the Wisdom Podcast for more great conversations on Buddhism, meditation, and mindfulness. And please give us a 5-star rating in Apple Podcasts if you enjoy our show—it’s a great support to us and it helps other people find the podcast. Thank you! The post Geshe Tenzin Namdak: Freedom Through Correct Knowing (#163) appeared first on The Wisdom Experience.

In this episode of the Wisdom Podcast, Wisdom CEO Daniel Aitken interviews renowned teachers Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche and Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche. This conversation heralded the beginning of the 2020 Serenity Ridge Dialogues, an online summit exploring the intersection of spirituality and science.  In this episode, Daniel and the two Rinpoches discuss many facets of Dharma practice in the modern world, including: Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche’s inspiration for starting the Dialogues What motivated the Rinpoches to start engaging in conversations about the mind with neuroscientists What the Rinpoches would study if they had their own neuroscience labs What about Buddhism uniquely places it in a position to engage with science What the term “Buddhist sciences” really means and much more! This event was co-produced with Ligmincha International, the Contemplative Sciences Center at the University of Virginia, and the Jung Center’s Mind Body Spirit Institute. Remember to subscribe to the Wisdom Podcast for more great conversations on Buddhism, meditation, and mindfulness. And please give us a 5-star rating in Apple Podcasts if you enjoy our show—it’s a great support to us and it helps other people find the podcast. Thank you! The post Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche and Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche: Dharma in the Modern World (#162) appeared first on The Wisdom Experience.

This Wisdom Podcast filmed as a live Wisdom Dharma Chat features special guest Venerable Bhikku Bodhi. Ven. Bhikkhu Bodhi is an American Buddhist monk from New York City, born in 1944. He obtained a BA in philosophy from Brooklyn College and a PhD in philosophy from Claremont Graduate School. After completing his university studies he traveled to Sri Lanka, where he received novice ordination in 1972 and full ordination in 1973, both under the leading Sri Lankan scholar-monk, Ven. Balangoda Ananda Maitreya (1896-1998). From 1984 to 2002 he was the editor for the Buddhist Publication Society in Kandy, where he lived for ten years with the senior German monk, Ven. Nyanaponika Thera (1901-1994), at the Forest Hermitage. He returned to the U.S. in 2002. He currently lives and teaches at Chuang Yen Monastery in Carmel, New York. Ven. Bodhi has many important publications to his credit, either as an author, translator, or editor. These include The Middle Length Discourses of the Buddha (Majjhima Nikaya, 1995), The Connected Discourses of the Buddha (Samyutta Nikaya, 2000), and The Numerical Discourses of the Buddha (Anguttara Nikaya, 2012). In 2008, together with several of his students, Ven. Bodhi founded Buddhist Global Relief, a nonprofit supporting hunger relief, sustainable agriculture, and education in countries suffering from chronic poverty and malnutrition.   Venerable and host Daniel Aitken discuss: Venerable’s book, Reading the Buddha’s Discourses in Pāli; The challenges of translating certain technical terms from Pāli such as words for knowledge and wisdom; The relationship between the Pāli suttas and the actual languages that the Buddha may have spoken; The benefits of learning Pāli; Which words are hardest to translate from Pāli; How to memorize Pāli verses; And much more. Links mentioned in the conversations can be found below: https://www.buddhistglobalrelief.org/buddhist-action-2020/ https://www.buddhistglobalrelief.org/donate/ https://wisdomexperience.org/product/buddhas-words/ https://wisdomexperience.org/wisdom-article/rebirth-in-early-buddhism-dhammaruwans-story/ Remember to subscribe to the Wisdom Podcast for more great conversations on Buddhism, meditation, and mindfulness. And please give us a 5-star rating in Apple Podcasts if you enjoy our show—it’s a great support to us and it helps other people find the podcast. Thank you! The post Venerable Bhikkhu Bodhi: Reading the Buddha’s Discourses in Pali (#161) appeared first on The Wisdom Experience.

This Wisdom Podcast filmed as a live Wisdom Dharma Chat features special guest Karl Brunnhölzl. Originally trained as a physician, Karl Brunnhölzl, MD, PhD, received his systematic training in Tibetan language and Buddhist philosophy and practice at the Marpa Institute for Translators, founded by Khenpo Tsultrim Gyamtso Rinpoche, as well as the Nitartha Institute, founded by Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche. Since 1989 he has been a translator and interpreter of Tibetan and English. Karl is a senior teacher and translator in the Nalandabodhi community of Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche, as well as at Nitartha Institute. He is also the author and translator of numerous texts, including most recently Sounds of Innate Freedom, Volume 3: The Indian Texts of Mahāmudrā, the canon of the mahasiddhas. In this episode, Karl and host Daniel Aitken discuss: his book, Sounds of Innate Freedom, Volume 4: The Indian Texts of Mahāmudrā; the dohā tradition of the mahasiddhas; singing and dancing as part of the path; the voice of women in the Mahāmudrā songs of realization; Karl’s musical recordings of the dohās, which can be found here; and much more. Remember to subscribe to the Wisdom Podcast for more great conversations on Buddhism, meditation, and mindfulness. And please give us a 5-star rating in Apple Podcasts if you enjoy our show—it’s a great support to us and it helps other people find the podcast. Thank you! The post Karl Brunnhölzl: Sounds of Innate Freedom (#160) appeared first on The Wisdom Experience.

This episode of the Wisdom Podcast, recorded live as a Wisdom Dharma Chat, features special guest His Eminence the 12th Zurmang Gharwang Rinpoche speaking with host Daniel Aitken. His Eminence the 12th Zurmang Gharwang Rinpoche was born a son of the Sikkimese royal court and was recognized by His Holiness the 16th Karmapa as the twelfth incarnation of the Gharwang tulkus. Rinpoche is the supreme lineage holder of the Whispered Lineage of the Zurmang Kagyu tradition. He teaches around the world. As head of the Zurmang Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism, Rinpoche is the spiritual head of thirteen monasteries and one nunnery in Tibet as well as monasteries and nunneries in India, Nepal, and Bhutan. Rinpoche oversees the spiritual education of the four thousand monks and nuns and approximately fifty thousand followers in the Zurmang Kagyu tradition worldwide. His Eminence and Daniel discuss: the Mahāmudrā teaching lineage and tradition of texts and practices; Rinpoche’s upcoming book, Mahāmudrā: A Practical Guide; practical, everyday advice from the Zurmang Mahāmudrā tradition; Rinpoche’s memories of the 16th Karmapa Rangjung Rigpe Dorje; the Zurmang lineage and monastery in Sikkim; and much more! Remember to subscribe to the Wisdom Podcast for more great conversations on Buddhism, meditation, and mindfulness. And please give us a 5-star rating in Apple Podcasts if you enjoy our show—it’s a great support to us and it helps other people find the podcast. Thank you! The post His Eminence the 12th Zurmang Gharwang Rinpoche: Mahāmudrā (#159) appeared first on The Wisdom Experience.