The Wisdom Podcast

In this Wisdom Podcast episode host Daniel Aitken joins   Douglas Duckworth as they discuss Douglas’s translation The Great Hūṃ . Douglas Duckworth is a professor of religion at Temple University in Philadelphia. He received his PhD in religious studies (Indo-Tibetan Buddhism) from the University of Virginia in 2005, and he previously taught at Kathmandu University. In this episode, Douglas shares...

Join Daniel Aitken and Ācārya Malcolm Smith as they discuss the roots of Dzogchen and the aural lineage in the Great Perfection tradition as described in Malcolm’s newest translation Yoga Of The Natural State , releasing in the winter of 2025 and available now for pre-order. In this episode of the Wisdom Podcast , recorded live as a Wisdom Dharma Chat , explore the historical transmission of Dzogc...

In this enriching Wisdom Podcast episode, host Daniel Aitken is joined by Christopher Ives , a professor and Zen practitioner. Chris is an author, translator, and avid outdoorsman. His writing focuses on ethics in Zen Buddhism and Buddhist approaches to nature and environmental issues. His previous publications with Wisdom include Zen on the Trail and Meditations on the Trail . Throughout the conv...

In this insightful episode of the Wisdom Podcast , host Daniel Aitken engages with Justin Kelley , Executive Director of Tergar Institute and Tergar Schools . Justin has practiced with  Mingyur Rinpoche for nearly 20 years and earned his PhD in Religious Studies from Rice University, where he studied with Dr. Anne C. Klein. Passionate about making Buddhist wisdom relevant today—particularly in edu...

In this episode , recorded live as a Wisdom Dharma Chat , host Daniel Aitken engages in a rich dialogue with Lama Alan Wallace . Lama Alan, a significant figure in the transmission of Tibetan Buddhism to the West, shares insights from his lifelong practice, teachings, and new Wisdom Publications release Dzokchen . The discussion delves deeply into the practices of shamatha, vipassana, and Dzokchen...

In this insightful conversation, host Daniel Aitken is joined by Michael Tweed . Michael is a well-known editor of Tibetan Buddhist texts, particularly on Dzogchen and Mahamudra. Titles he has worked on include Blazing Splendor by Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche, Brilliant Moon by Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, Clear Mirror by Dudjom Lingpa, and many more. During this episode, Michael shares his remarkable journe...

Join us in celebrating a major milestone—our 200th episode. Over the years, the  Wisdom Podcast   has become a gathering place for seekers, practitioners, and thought leaders in the Buddhist tradition, offering listeners wisdom and insight from some of the most remarkable teachers of our time. We continue this legacy of profound conversations with a truly special guest— Venerable Thubten Chodron —...

In this enriching Wisdom Podcast episode, host Daniel Aitken is joined by Venerable Losang Gendun . Venerable Gendun is a Tibetan Buddhist monk who was ordained in 2006. A dedicated teacher for over 15 years, Ven. Gendun has taught Buddhist philosophy, psychology, and meditation across Europe and the US, and was the resident teacher of FPMT ’s Maitreya Institute in Amsterdam for six years. As a me...

This episode of the Wisdom Podcast , recorded live as a Wisdom Dharma Chat features special guest Geshe YongDong Losar . Geshe YongDong is a Tibetan Bön lama, or spiritual teacher, in the Yungdrung Bön lineage, which is rooted in the indigenous spiritual tradition of the Himalayas. He lives in Courtenay, British Columbia, where he established and directs Sherab Chamma Ling, the only Tibetan Bön Bu...

In this, the fourth and final episode of our celebratory series , Wisdom Podcast host Daniel Aitken is joined by special guest Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche ! Listen as Rinpoche guides you on a journey throughout his life, beginning with his early memories of his father, Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche, the impact his father had on him and his own teaching, all the way to his father’s passing. This episode is als...

Welcome to the third episode of our celebratory Blazing Splendor Wisdom Podcast series! This episode was recorded earlier this year as a live Wisdom Dharma Chat where host Daniel Aitken was joined by special guest, Tsoknyi Rinpoche . During this episode, Rinpoche shares deep insights from his father, Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche’s teachings, along with personal anecdotes in celebration of the relea...

In this second episode of our celebratory Blazing Splendor Wisdom Podcast Series host Daniel Aitken is joined by Erik Pema Kunsang . Enjoy hearing Erik share profound experiences with Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche in “ Timeless Teachings with Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche ,” including a story he’s never shared before.   During this episode, Daniel and Erik discuss: how Rinpoche led him to the realization of...

In the first episode of this celebratory series of episodes, Wisdom Podcast host Daniel Aitken is joined by Marcia Binder Schmidt , one of the editors of Blazing Splendor and a student of Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche. During this episode, she and Daniel discuss  how she began to practice Tibetan Buddhism; her impactful first meeting with Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche; how the book Blazing Splendor came to be;  h...

In this insightful episode of the Wisdom Podcast , recorded live as a Wisdom Dharma Chat , special guest, Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche, joins host Daniel Aitken . As a distinguished teacher and meditation master in the Bön tradition of Tibet, Rinpoche offers profound insight into the application and practice of dream yoga.  During this conversation, Rinpoche and Daniel explore:  Rinpoche’s teache...

This episode of the Wisdom Podcast , recorded live as a Wisdom Dharma Chat features special guest, H. E. Khangser Rinpoche . At the age of five, H.E. Khangser Rinpoche was recognized as the eighth reincarnation of Khangser Rinpoche. By 2005, he had earned both the Geshe Lharampa degree and a doctorate in tantra, both with the highest honors in the top division. In 2023, Rinpoche came in line to on...

This episode of the Wisdom Podcast , recorded live as a Wisdom Dharma Chat features special guest, Thupten Jinpa . Since 1985, Jinpa has been the principal translator to the Dalai Lama, accompanying him to the United States, Canada, and Europe. He is an accomplished author and translator. His Wisdom Publications credits include the Science and Philosophy in the Indian Buddhist Classics series, mul...

This special rerelease episode of the Wisdom Podcast features Jeffrey Hopkins . Jeffrey started meditating while at Harvard and then, inspired by Thoreau and W. Somerset Maugham, spent time in a cabin in the woods in Vermont. He was Professor Emeritus of Tibetan Buddhist Studies at the University of Virginia, where he taught Tibetan Studies and Tibetan language for more than thirty years. He recei...

This episode of the Wisdom Podcast features Dr. Joanne Cacciatore . Dr. Jo has a deep relationship with grief and bereavement. She is herself a bereaved mother: her newborn daughter died on July 27, 1994, and that single tragic moment catapulted her unwillingly onto the reluctant path of traumatic grief. For more than two decades, she’s devoted herself to direct practice with grief, helping trauma...

This episode of the Wisdom Podcast features H. E. Khangser Rinpoche . At the age of five, H. E. Khangser Rinpoche was recognized as the eighth reincarnation of Khangser Rinpoche. By 2005, he had earned both the Geshe Lharampa degree and a doctorate in tantra, both with the highest honors in the top division. Rinpoche is a great scholar who has achieved mastery in both the Gelug and Nyingma Buddhis...

This episode of the Wisdom Podcast , recorded live as a Wisdom Dharma Chat features special guest, Klaus-Dieter Mathes and Péter-Dániel Szántó . Klaus-Dieter Mathes earned his doctorate at Marburg University, and is a Professor of Buddhist Studies at the University of Hong Kong. He previously worked as a research fellow and lecturer at the Asia Africa Institute at the University of Hamburg, German...

This episode of the Wisdom Podcast , recorded live as a Wisdom Dharma Chat features special guest, H. E. Kalu Rinpoche . Rinpoche is the Lineage Holder of Shangpa Kagyu. He was born in 1990 and recognized by H. H. the Dalai Lama and H. H. the 12th Chamgon Kenting Tai Situpa . Kalu Rinpoche completed the traditional three-year retreat between January 2004 and September 2008. After graduating he tra...

This episode of the Wisdom Podcast features Tim Olmsted . Tim is the founder and president of the Pema Chödrön Foundation and former director of Gampo Abbey. He began his Buddhist studies in 1977 under the late Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche in Boulder, Colorado. In 1981, after being moved by a visit from Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche, Tim and his family moved to Kathmandu to study with Tulku Urgyen and his son...

This episode of the Wisdom Podcast features Cortland Dahl . Cortland is a scientist, translator, and meditation teacher who offers workshops and leads retreats around the world. He has practiced meditation for nearly three decades, spent time on retreat in monasteries and at retreat centers throughout Japan, Burma, and India, and spent eight years living in Tibetan refugee settlements in Kathmandu...

This episode of the Wisdom Podcast , recorded live as a Wisdom Dharma Chat features special guest, Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche . Born in the Himalayan border regions between Tibet and Nepal, Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche is a rising star among the new generation of Tibetan Buddhist teachers. His candid, often humorous accounts of his personal difficulties have endeared him to audiences around the world. Dur...

T his episode of the Wisdom Podcast , recorded live as a Wisdom Dharma Chat features special guest, Peter Skilling . Peter is a special lecturer at Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, and an honorary associate, Department of Indian Sub-Continental Studies, University of Sydney, Australia. Until his retirement in 2017, he was a professor of the French School of Asian Studies (EFEO) based in Bangkok....