Buddhist Wisdom, Modern Life

If you've ever wondered how the different types of Buddhism developed -- like Zen, Tibetan, Theravada, Pure Land, etc. -- and what their basic similarities are, this video will walk you through an overview of that history! I'll explain the Buddha (when he lived and an overview of his teachings), major points in the development of the Buddhist traditions (like the spread of the dharma through what'...

What happens when we die? It's one of the biggest mysteries of human life, and all spiritual traditions offer an answer. But Tibetan Buddhism has incredibly extensive teachings about the death and rebirth process.    You might have heard of the "Tibetan Book of the Dead" (actually a whole genre of literature and practices), and in this video I'll walk you through the process it describes...

Green Tara's mantra (OM TARE TUTTARE TURE SOHA) is famous and beloved in Tibet and elsewhere. In this short teaching and meditation practice, I'll give a brief introduction to Tara, and then (about minute 7) we'll chant her mantra together. So join me and get your green on! Want a free quick guide to rebirth in Tibetan Buddhism (e.g., the teachings of The Tibetan Book of the Dead )? Grab it here n...

If you're interested in the teachings of Mahayana Buddhism, you've surely heard the term "bodhichitta." It's supposed to be the aspiration behind all of our dharma practice -- but what does it actually mean? "Bodhichitta" (also spelled bodhicitta) means the aspiration to wake up fully (i.e., realize our buddhahood or "become enlightened") in order to help everyone else wake up, too. The practices...

Karma is one of the most important teachings of Buddhism, but it's often misunderstood! Let's talk about what karma is (actions and their results), how mindfulness practice can help us create good karma, how hard times can help us burn off bad karma, and more. This video was recorded from a live Insight Timer teaching. To find me there and join future teachings live -- for free -- see: http://insi...

In Buddhism, the Three Jewels are the Buddha (the one who shows us the way to awakening), the Dharma (the teachings that wake us up), and the Sangha (our guides and friends on the path to awakening). Traditionally, Buddhists have taken refuge in these daily because they orient us toward the highest truth and help us remember there's more to life than the daily grind. Whether you're Buddhist or not...

Meditation retreats are a wonderful way to deepen your practice -- so in this video I'll share what retreat is, how you can do retreat, and the benefits this kind of practice brings.  Whether you're curious about Buddhist retreats, interested in a 10-day vipassana retreat course, or just looking to unplug sometimes in daily life, the practice and attitude of retreat can help!   Learn mor...

In Tibetan Buddhism, mantras are sacred syllables that evoke the energy of a buddha. We say them to wake that divine energy up in ourselves.  Mantras are intended to protect the mind from falling asleep to our true nature by reminding us that we have buddha nature. When we say them, we're calling on the energy of the buddha whose mantra we're saying (like Green Tara with OM TARE TUTTARE TURE...

Emptiness and buddha nature might sound like two different topics, but actually they're deeply interconnected, and both are vital to Mahayana Buddhism.  "Emptiness" means that everything we experience in the world -- including our selves -- is empty of existing from its own side. Our bodies, for instance, are made of DNA from our parents and molecules from food, air, etc.   But there's m...

Dukkha is an important word in Buddhism. It can mean anything from subtle unease -- thinking life could somehow be better -- to outright suffering. In this guided meditation, we'll notice what brings us dukkha and what doesn't. You might be surprised at what you discover!

Buddhism’s Fourth Noble Truth contains the entire Buddhist path to awakening (enlightenment). It states that there’s a path from unawakened existence, in which we’re always subject to dissatisfaction, to full awakening, a state beyond the understanding of our ordinary mind. We’ll talk about the eight steps along this path: skillful understanding, skillful thought, skillful speech, skillful action,...

The Buddhist tradition teaches that everything is impermanent, but what does that mean? With this simple meditation, we'll pay attention to the flow of the breath, its pauses and its unceasing dynamism.

In this guided meditation, we'll imagine a luminous pebble dropping down through the ocean until it comes to rest at the bottom. In the process, we focus the mind and drop it deeper into the body. If you enjoy meditations that use your imagination, this is a great way to get focused and reduce stress.

We often focus on the objects of mind -- thoughts, sensations, feelings, etc. -- without noticing the mind itself. In this guided meditation, we'll settle the mind and then shift our focus to the space in which all experience happens. As we get more comfortable with space, we'll stop filling it up with thoughts, busyness, and everything else that keeps us overloaded.

Get this free mini-course that introduces you to each of the Four Noble Truths, with guided meditations, reflection questions, a reading list, and more: https://bit.ly/Bddhist4NTs Following classic Buddhist teachings, in this meditation we interrogate our experience with the simple question: "Is this me?" Is each breath, each bodily sensation, each thought really me ? Or is my mind constantly weav...

For a free mini-course on the Four Noble Truths and how they can help us live more fulfilling lives, visit https://bit.ly/Bddhist4NTs . The third Noble Truth presents the goal of Buddhist practice and the ultimate Buddhist belief: the mind is luminous and fully aware by nature, and when that's uncovered, we've finally cut the root of ignorance. We've woken up. Called the truth of cessation, the Th...

For a free mini-course on the Four Noble Truths and how they can help us live more fulfilling lives, visit https://bit.ly/Bddhist4NTs . In the first Noble Truth (see previous episode), the Buddha describes the human predicament: we keep chasing after things (or people or accomplishments) we think will satisfy our sense that there's something more, something better for us. But external things or re...

For a free mini-course on the Four Noble Truths and how they can help us live more fulfilling lives, visit https://bit.ly/Bddhist4NTs . The first of the Four Noble Truths is the one most people think they know, but it's also the most misunderstood. Often it's translated as "Life is suffering," which isn't very accurate. Instead, the Buddha taught that as long as we don't understand the nature of r...

These teachings are the foundations of Buddhist beliefs around the world, and in this episode you'll hear the story behind the Four Noble Truths: of the Buddha's spiritual quest for enlightenment. That quest is one that each of us can still make, and it's easier now that we have a guide to the path!  Get this free mini-course that introduces you to each of the Four Noble Truths, with guided m...

This meditation is for fans of the improvised comedy sci-fi podcast Mission to Zyxx, in which there are Jedi-like "mystical warriors" called the Zima knights. But the Zimas are more like stoner hippies who train in the Space rather than the Force, so this track is pretty silly. 😜 

Tibetan Buddhism offers powerful tools for cleansing our minds and bodies of stress and anxiety -- or anything else that's obscuring our luminous buddha nature.  In this short teaching and 15-ish minute guided cleansing meditation, we imagine a figure who represents groundedness and peace to us, then imagine them blessing us to release our mental detritus.   This episode is the audio fro...

Tong-len (meditation on taking and giving) has deep roots in Tibetan Buddhism.  For this practice, we imagine a version of ourselves -- or you could imagine someone else who's difficult to deal with -- and imagine relieving their suffering and offering them happiness instead.  For a deeper dive on this type of meditation and its capacity to help us cultivate compassion, see Pema Chodron'...

In these stressful times, it's tempting to "seek refuge" in quick fixes that distract us from uncomfortable feelings of deficiency and vulnerability (like binging social media, losing ourselves reading or watching TV, doomscrolling, etc.).  But if we can remember that we contain a sacred, luminous core, that's our true refuge from life's uncertainties. This audio comes from a video you can fi...

Want to move your body and meditate at the same time?  This short, guided walking meditation track takes you through a timeless practice -- that makes a great break if you typically sit at a desk all day!

This short practice is intended to help turn down your amygdala (the part of the brain responsible for the fear and stress response), helping you find a calm center in the middle of life's storms.  It's guided, with the sounds of rain on the roof of a cabin and a cozy fire inside to help turn our attention from the stresses of the world -- the rain -- to our internal resources -- the fire.