Book Reviews
Episode 105 :: Shyalpa Tenzin Rinpoche :: Living Fully: Finding Joy in Every Breath
Shyalpa Tenzin Rinpoche joins us to speak about his new book, Living Fully: Finding Joy in Every Breath.
Hi, everyone. I’m recording this introduction while attending the Wisdom 2.0 conference in California. This is the second of the “W20” conferences, next month is the tenth annual International Scientific Conference, April is the inaugural International Symposia for Contemplative Studies, and then of course we’re looking forward to attending the second Buddhist Geeks conference in August. All of these are linked on the calendar on the SecularBuddhism.org website of course, but the point is our practice is growing. It’s finding new and vital ways to change people’s lives outside of traditional settings, opening the door for others who may otherwise not find the same wonder of this practice, that we do.
Read MoreEpisode 103 :: Gay Hendricks :: Tinker Lindsay :: The First Rule of Ten
Authors Gay Hendricks and Tinker Lindsay join us to talk about their new Buddhist-themed detective novel, The First Rule of Ten.
Hi, everyone. We’ve had some deep episodes lately, delving into our practice and ideals of Buddhism, to the growing of secular community. So today I’d like to take a step over to more lighthearted fare, and talk about something we don’t get to talk about very often: a fiction detective novel with a Buddhist lead character, Tenzin.
Of course, we sneak in some practice components, too, especially around collaboration and how we work with others in our lives.
Read MoreEpisode 102 :: Martine Batchelor :: Let Go: A Buddhist Guide to Breaking Free of Habits
Martine Batchelor speaks with us about her book, Let Go: A Buddhist Guide to Breaking Free of Habits.
Habits. We all have them, most insidiously if we aren’t even aware of them. Fortunately, we’re not stuck with habits, and every moment is an opportunity to have a new and fresh beginning at redirecting our minds, so we can break that cycle of habit formation and continuation.
Read MoreEpisode 100 :: Stephen Batchelor :: The Awakening of the West
Today we speak with Stephen Batchelor about his book The Awakening of the West: The Encounter of Buddhism and Western Culture.
Hi, everyone. Welcome to this milestone in The Secular Buddhist podcast, as we expand into our third digit of Episode 100. We would not have reached this point without you, our growing listener community. And it is growing, as of this recording each episode is getting over 1200 downloads with over 142,000 total. The Secular Buddhist is usually if not always listed in the top 36 on iTunes for Buddhist podcasts, the FaceBook page has over 2000 Likes, and even our Twitter feed is seeing a constant stream of new Followers. We have a new website for the Secular Buddhist Association, designed for the development of community, with new sites springing up in other countries (more on that next week!). And our sincerest thanks to the many wonderful guests it has been a great joy to speak with. If not for you, this podcast would not have gained the attention it has.
Read MoreEpisode 99 :: Dr. Rick Hanson :: Just One Thing
Dr. Rick Hanson Dr. Rick Hanson speaks with us about his new book, Just One Thing: Developing A Buddha Brain One Simple Practice at a Time. It’s a daunting task, changing our minds. Not the simple, “I wanted a mocha, but maybe a latte would be better” kind of changing our minds, that’s pretty easy.…
Read MoreEpisode 91 :: Noah Levine :: The Heart of the Revolution
Dharma Punx founder Noah Levine speaks with us about his new book, The Heart of the Revolution.
Many of us who come to a Buddhist practice in contemporary Western society, come to it from many directions. We’re interested in the culture of Japan. We have a martial arts practice. We have some suffering in our life, and whatever we’ve been doing just isn’t working. Often this suffering manifests in unhealthy ways, increasing our pain rather than helping us find release.
Read MoreEpisode 86 :: Donald Altman :: One Minute Mindfulness
Donald Altman Donald Altman, author of The Mindfulness Code, speaks with us about his new book One Minute Mindfulness, and mindful eating. One of the most daunting aspects of our meditation practice is just how long it takes, particularly as beginners. Often, the most difficult meditation session is the very first time we try to…
Read MoreEpisode 83 :: Owen Flanagan :: The Bodhisattva's Brain
Owen Flanagan Owen Flanagan speaks with us about his new book The Bodhisattva’s Brain: Buddhism Naturalized. It’s not very often that I get a series of emails, FaceBook messages, and even Tweets about a new book that’s just come out, but recently that did occur. And because this is really a podcast for you, I…
Read MoreEpisode 81 :: Dr. Dan Siegel :: Mindsight: The New Science of Personal Transformation
Dr. Dan Siegel Dr. Dan Siegel speaks with us about Mindsight: The New Science of Personal Transformation, and how we can describe what the mind really is. When we say mind is not simply limited to the body, that is often inaccurately perceived as a dichotomy between mind and body, that there is a separate…
Read MoreEpisode 79 :: Jason Siff :: Unlearning Meditation Part Two
Jason Siff Jason Siff speaks with us about Unlearning Meditation in the second of a two part episode. Jason Siff was a Buddhist monk in Sri Lanka in the late 1980s, where he began studying Pali and teaching meditation. After he left the Buddhist monastic order and returned to Los Angeles in 1990, he studied…
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