Perennial Meditations

In this episode, my guest is Dr. Joshua Knabb the author of Christian Meditation in Clinical Practice . Dr. Knabb is a Board-Certified Clinical Psychologist with research interests in mindfulness-based therapies, the psychology of religion and spirituality, and Christian meditative and contemplative practices. In the conversation, we discuss:  Searching for wisdom Contemplative practices Navigatin...

In today’s episode, I’m sharing another response to the question "what is wisdom?" This short clip comes from my conversation with Steven Nadler the author of Think Least of Death: Spinoza on How to Live and How to Die . Professor Nadler’s research focuses on philosophy in the seventeenth century and he’s written extensively on Spinoza. Steven also has a new book coming out called When Bad Thinkin...

In this episode, my guest is Dr. Nic Bommarito the author of Seeing Clearly: A Buddhist Guide to Life . Dr. Bommarito is an Assistant Professor of Philosophy and his research focuses on questions in virtue ethics, moral psychology, and Buddhist philosophy. Seeing Clearly is a guide to the good life that anyone can follow, laying out the basic philosophical ideas behind Buddhism’s teachings and off...

In this episode, my guest is Brandon Tumblin the host of The Strong Stoic Podcast . Brandon is a friend, a deep thinker, and someone with an interesting perspective on life. I highly encourage you to check out his podcast; he explores a wide range of philosophical ideas both solo and with guests.  In the conversation, Brandon and I discuss:  Stoicism Happiness Love Desire The Good Life and much mo...

In this episode, I share a short clip from my conversation with Dr. Dilip Jeste the author of Wiser: The Scientific Roots of Wisdom, Compassion, and What Makes Us Good . Dr. Jeste is a neuropsychiatrist who has spent more than 20 years studying aspects of wisdom and healthy aging. In the conversation, Dr. Jeste discusses the difference between intelligence and wisdom, and answers the question - Wh...

In this episode, my guest is Brittany Polat the author of Tranquility Parenting: A Guide to Staying Calm, Mindful, and Engaged . Brittany believes that anyone who is willing to reflect carefully on life can make progress toward inner peace and contentment. She has a Ph. D. in applied linguistics and her website is livinginagreement.com .  In the conversation, we discuss:  Searching for wisdom Find...

In this episode, my guest is James Romm the author of Dying Every Day: Seneca at the Court of Nero . James is a Professor of Classics at Bard College in NY. He specializes in ancient Greek and Roman culture. He has also edited two books on Seneca for the Ancient Wisdom for Modern Readers series titled How to Die and How to Keep Your Cool .  In the conversation, James and I discuss:  The meaning of...

In this episode, my guest is Dr. Carl Erik Fisher the author of the new book The Urge: Our History of Addiction . Carl is an addiction psychiatrist, bioethics scholar, and assistant professor of clinical psychiatry at Columbia University. He is a Zen practitioner, and his clinical work focuses on applications of meditation and mindfulness. Carl also hosts the Flourishing after Addiction podcast.  ...

In this episode, my guest is Tim Parks the author of the new book The Hero’s Way: Walking with Garibaldi from Rome to Ravenna . Tim is an acclaimed author, translator, and essayist. He grew up in London and studied at Cambridge and Harvard. In 1981, he moved to Italy where he has lived ever since, raising a family of three children. Tim Parks’s acclaimed books about Italy include Italian Ways , It...

In this episode, my guest is William Irvine the author of A Guide to the Good Life , The Stoic Challenge , and On Desire to name a few. William is a philosophy professor who not only teaches, thinks, and writes about philosophy, but who has adopted a philosophy for living, namely, the ancient philosophy known as Stoicism.  In the conversation, William and I discuss:  Philosophy Desire  Happiness ...

In this episode, my guest is Leidy Klotz the author of Subtract: The Untapped Science of Less . Leidy has a Ph. D. in Architectural Engineering and studies how we transform things from how they are to how we want them to be.   In the conversation, Leidy and I discuss:  The science of less The research on our tendency to add over subtracting How this tendency influences organizations and policy dec...

In this episode, my guest is David Fideler the author of Breakfast with Seneca: A Stoic Guide to the Art of Living . David’s studied ancient religions and philosophies, the history of science, and holds a Ph. D. in philosophy and intellectual history.   In the conversation, David and I discuss:  The life of Seneca Cultivating friendship Navigating hardships Overcoming fear and anxiety Wisdom and m...

In this episode, my guest is Carl McColman the author of Eternal Heart: The Mystical Path to a Joyful Life . Carl is a contemplative writer, speaker, and teacher. He is the author of numerous books, including The Big Book of Christian Mysticism , Answering the Contemplative Call , and Unteachable Lessons to name a few. In the conversation, Carl and I discuss:  The meaning of mysticism Exploring va...

In this episode, my guests are Meghan Sullivan and Paul Blaschko the authors of the new book The Good Life Method: Reasoning Through the Big Questions of Happiness, Faith, and Meaning . Meghan Sullivan is the Wilsey Family Col­lege Professor in Philosophy at the University of Notre Dame, director of the God and the Good Life Program, and director of the Notre Dame Institute for Advanced Study. Pau...

In this episode, my guest is Donald Robertson the author of How to Think Like a Roman Emperor as well as a forthcoming graphic novel titled Verissimus: The Stoic Philosophy of Marcus Aurelius available for preorder. Donald is a writer, cognitive-behavioral psychotherapist, and trainer. He specializes in teaching evidence-based psychological skills and is known as an expert on the relationship betw...

In this episode, my guest is Professor Shimon Edelman the author of Life, Death, and Other Inconvenient Truths: A Realist’s View of the Human Condition . Shimon is a professor at Cornell University and is interested in all aspects of mind, brain, behavior, and the human condition. At Cornell, Prof. Edelman works on behavioral, neural, evolutionary, and computational aspects of language, vision, co...

In this episode, my guest is Kevin Griffin. Kevin is a long-time meditation teacher and best known as the author of One Breathe at a Time . He also has a daily reader that I’m really enjoying called Buddhism and the Twelve Steps Daily Reflections . Kevin is a longtime Buddhist practitioner and 12 Step participant, he is a leader in the mindful recovery movement and one of the founders of the Buddh...

In this episode, I speak to Dr. Karen Swallow Prior the author of On Reading Well: Finding the Good Life through Great Books . Karen is a Research Professor of English and Christianity and Culture at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. Her writing has appeared at Christianity Today , The Atlantic , The Washington Post , First Things , Vox , Relevant , Think Christian , The Gospel Coalition,...

Welcome and thank you for listening! In today’s episode, I am sharing a short reflection from The PERENNIAL Podcast another show we produce at the Perennial Leader Project .  In addition to sharing this reflection with you. I wanted to announce that season two of PERENNIAL is starting just after the new year and it will be all about The Wisdom of Seneca. I’ll be taking a deep dive into Seneca’s wr...

In this episode, I speak to Catherine Wilson the author of How to Be an Epicurean: The Ancient Art of Living Well .  Catherine received her Ph. D. in philosophy from Princeton University and has taught at universities in the US, Canada, and Europe. Her research is focused on the relationship between the natural and social sciences and classical philosophical problems in the following areas: the hi...

In this episode, I speak to Lodro Rinzler the author of Take Back Your Mind: Buddhist Advice for Anxious Times . Lodro’s work has been featured in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic, Good Morning America, CBS, and NBC.  He is the author of seven meditation books including The Buddha Walks into a Bar and is the co-founder of MNDFL meditation studios in New York City. Lodro ha...

In this episode, I am sharing a portion of the conversation we had with Kristi Nelson the author of Wake Up Grateful: The Transformative Practice of Taking Nothing for Granted . Kristi has spent most of her adult life in non-profit leadership, fundraising, and organizational development. In a wide variety of roles, she has helped to lead, fund, and strengthen organizations committed to progressive...

In this episode, I speak to Susan Liautaud the author of The Power of Ethics: How to Make Good Choices in a Complicated World . Susan is the founder and managing director of Susan Liautaud & Associates Limited, which advises clients from global corporations to NGOs on complex ethics matters. She teaches cutting-edge ethics courses at Stanford and has a forthcoming book titled: The Little Book...

In this episode, I speak to Andrew Lynn the author of the book Classic Philosophy for the Modern Man . Andrew is a lawyer, writer, and author of the ‘Classics for the Modern Man’ series. His mission as a writer is to draw upon classic texts and traditional wisdom in order to help us answer the most profound questions that we face as human beings. The Classics for the Modern Man series include Clas...

In this episode, I speak to Simon Drew the author of the new book The Poet & The Sage . Simon is a poet, musician, photographer, and philosophical mentor. He is someone that I’ve listened to many times over the years through The Practical Stoic podcast which has now transformed into The Walled Garden .    In the conversation, Simon and I discuss: The Poet & The Sage Searching for wisdom Ho...