Author Archive: Ted Meissner
Ted Meissner is the Executive Director of the Secular Buddhist Association, host of the SBA's official podcast The Secular Buddhist, and is on the Advisory Board for the Spiritual Naturalist Society. His background is in the Zen and Theravada traditions, he is a regular speaker on interfaith panel discussions, and is interested in examining the evolution of contemplative practice in contemporary culture.
Episode 167 :: Bhikkhu Sujato :: Bhikkhuni Sangha and The Authenticity Project
Bhikkhu Sujato Bhikkhu Sujato joins us to speak about the ordination of women in the Theravada tradition, and his work with canonical veracity in The Authenticity Project. How do we know for sure what Gotama said? We probably can’t, and we can further muddy the waters with unsupportable assertions about the perfection of the Pali [...]
Episode 166 :: David Webster :: Dispirited: How Contemporary Spirituality Makes Us Stupid, Selfish and Unhappy
David Webster Author and teacher David Webster joins us to speak about his book, Dispirited: How Contemporary Spirituality Makes Us Stupid, Selfish and Unhappy. What happens when we have the ability to pick and choose components from various religious traditions, and try to integrate them into our practice? This cafeteria spirituality as it’s sometimes called, [...]
Why Do We Keep Practicing?
I had an email exchange recently with a gentleman who asked some very good questions, and thought it might prompt some helpful discussion here on the site. Names and identity details were removed. Email One To: Webmaster I just got through listening to your interview on Books and Ideas podscast. I … attended the local [...]
Episode 165 :: Leigh Brasington :: Sutta Jhanas
Leigh Brasington Leigh Brasington joins us to speak about what the Pali canon suttas have to say about practicing the jhanas. In traditional Theravadin Buddhism, there’s this thing called the Eightfold Path. It is the process by which we abandon the fetters, those pesky things that lead us to regular encounters with dissatisfaction in life. [...]
Episode 164 :: Sebene Selassie :: New York Insight Meditation Center
Sebene Selassie Sebene Selassie, Executive Director of New York Insight Meditation Center, joins us to speak about organizational models in contemporary Western sanghas. Times change. We’re not in Deer Park or Vulture’s Peak two and a half thousand years ago, we’re in Central Park and Pike’s Peak in the twenty-first century. What people do, what [...]
Episode 163 :: Tuere Sala :: People of Color Sanghas
Tuere Sala Meditation teacher and community leader Tuere Sala speaks with us about moving from a monotheistic tradition to Buddhism, and supporting the growth of diversity in our sanghas. Our race is more than simply the color of our skins. There are subtle but profound cultural templates, and ways of thinking, that permeate and motivate [...]
Episode 162 :: Vince Horn :: Buddhist Geeks
Vince Horn Vince Horn joins us to talk about his work on Buddhist Geeks. Buddhism is being impacted by a lot lately. Not only is it faced with the selective pressures of modernity, but the digital revolution is creating new evolutionary opportunities. These two forces are squishing Buddhism and other traditions into radically new shapes, [...]
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