https://simplecast.com Voices of Love Voices of Love: Bridging Differences Through Compassionate Conversations We are living in a time of deep fragmentation. Communities and nations are increasingly divided along lines of political affiliation and ideology, race, class, religion, immigration status, language, and more. The public conversation often suggests there are only two sides: winners and losers, us and them. Voices of Love begins from a different premise. This series asks whether another way forward is possible—one grounded not in uniformity of belief, but in curiosity, empathy, and a willingness to truly listen to one another. When we perceive others’ beliefs and opinions as different from our own, it can feel difficult—sometimes even unsafe—to listen openly or ask why they see the world as they do. Yet, research in conflict and peacebuilding, as well as lived experience, suggest that our collective capacity to bridge divides is essential for any sustainable future. When we slow down enough to hear each other, we begin to recognize a shared humanity beneath our labels and positions. This podcast explores that possibility. Throughout the series, Voices of Love brings together guests who work at the front lines of social, cultural, and interpersonal challenge. Episodes will touch on various forms of “othering,” including those related to race, class, religion, ethnicity, immigration status, access to housing, dominant language, and more. Alongside these stories, we also explore the science of compassion and emotion, investigating what helps us expand our circle of care even when common ground feels hard to find. Our aim is not to provide easy answers. The conversations may raise as many questions as they resolve. But we believe that across the spectrum of human experience, there is at least one shared space in which we can all meet: we all have needs, we all have dreams, and those dreams can be expansive enough to include concern, curiosity, and love for others. Voices of Love invites readers and listeners alike to: • Question assumptions and stereotypes, • Stay curious when it might feel easier to disengage, and • Consider reaching across at least one divide in their own lives. At the heart of this project is a simple conviction: everyone belongs. In a system organized around winners and losers, everyone ultimately loses. In a culture shaped by empathy, compassion, and love, we all have the possibility of being seen and included. Hosted by Tenzin Choki, with Greg Morris and Mathew Divaris, Voices of Love: Bridging Differences Through Compassionate Conversations invites you into stories and insights that illuminate what it means to care across our differences—and to rediscover our shared humanity. 2025 Tenzin Chogkyi en Thu, 26 Feb 2026 08:00:00 +0000 Thu, 26 Feb 2026 08:00:14 +0000 https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com Voices of Love https://image.simplecastcdn.com/images/afd3c1f0-063a-4635-b90b-6bf47d8cce0d/d28f1e21-27e4-4751-8e41-9e67114abbec/3000x3000/voices-20of-20love-20general-20square.jpg?aid=rss_feed https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com episodic Voices of Love: Bridging Differences Through Compassionate Conversations We are living in a time of deep fragmentation. Communities and nations are increasingly divided along lines of political affiliation and ideology, race, class, religion, immigration status, language, and more. The public conversation often suggests there are only two sides: winners and losers, us and them. Voices of Love begins from a different premise. This series asks whether another way forward is possible—one grounded not in uniformity of belief, but in curiosity, empathy, and a willingness to truly listen to one another. When we perceive others’ beliefs and opinions as different from our own, it can feel difficult—sometimes even unsafe—to listen openly or ask why they see the world as they do. Yet, research in conflict and peacebuilding, as well as lived experience, suggest that our collective capacity to bridge divides is essential for any sustainable future. When we slow down enough to hear each other, we begin to recognize a shared humanity beneath our labels and positions. This podcast explores that possibility. Throughout the series, Voices of Love brings together guests who work at the front lines of social, cultural, and interpersonal challenge. Episodes will touch on various forms of “othering,” including those related to race, class, religion, ethnicity, immigration status, access to housing, dominant language, and more. Alongside these stories, we also explore the science of compassion and emotion, investigating what helps us expand our circle of care even when common ground feels hard to find. Our aim is not to provide easy answers. The conversations may raise as many questions as they resolve. But we believe that across the spectrum of human experience, there is at least one shared space in which we can all meet: we all have needs, we all have dreams, and those dreams can be expansive enough to include concern, curiosity, and love for others. Voices of Love invites readers and listeners alike to: • Question assumptions and stereotypes, • Stay curious when it might feel easier to disengage, and • Consider reaching across at least one divide in their own lives. At the heart of this project is a simple conviction: everyone belongs. In a system organized around winners and losers, everyone ultimately loses. In a culture shaped by empathy, compassion, and love, we all have the possibility of being seen and included. Hosted by Tenzin Choki, with Greg Morris and Mathew Divaris, Voices of Love: Bridging Differences Through Compassionate Conversations invites you into stories and insights that illuminate what it means to care across our differences—and to rediscover our shared humanity. Tenzin Chogkyi false https://feeds.simplecast.com/0Aeekd8i buddhism, social justice, positive psychology, mindfulness, wellbeing, happiness, meditation Tenzin Chogkyi unlocking@silentroom.com 77e93f77-445b-42e0-82cf-d6d5f0c15b90 Angry Long Enough with sujatha baliga sujatha baliga’s work is characterized by an equal dedication to crime survivors and people who’ve caused harm. A former victim advocate and public defender, baliga was awarded a Soros Justice Fellowship in 2008 which she used to launch a now nation-wide restorative youth diversion program. For her decades of work in conflict transformation and restorative justice, she was named a 2019 MacArthur Fellow.

During her many years as the Director of the Restorative Justice Project, sujatha helped communities across the nation implement restorative justice alternatives to juvenile detention and zero-tolerance school discipline policies. Today, she's dedicated to using this approach to end child sexual abuse and intimate partner violence. sujatha is a frequent guest lecturer at universities and conferences; she speaks publicly and inside prisons about her own experiences as a survivor of child sexual abuse and her path to forgiveness. She is working on her first book, Angry Long Enough, to be published by One World/Penguin Random House in 2026.

sujatha earned her A.B. from Harvard and Radcliffe Colleges, her J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania, and has held two federal district court clerkships. Her personal and research interests include the forgiveness of seemingly unforgivable acts and Buddhist notions of conflict transformation.

sujatha’s faith journey undergirds her justice work. A long-time Buddhist practitioner, she’s a lay member of the Gyuto Foundation, a Tibetan Buddhist Monastery in Richmond, CA, where she leads meditation on Monday nights. She makes her home in Berkeley, CA, with her partner of 28 years, Jason, and their 19-year-old child, Sathya.

Links:

]]> Thu, 26 Feb 2026 08:00:00 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Tenzin Chogkyi, sujatha baliga) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/angry-long-enough-with-sujatha-baliga-GgJqkewU sujatha baliga’s work is characterized by an equal dedication to crime survivors and people who’ve caused harm. A former victim advocate and public defender, baliga was awarded a Soros Justice Fellowship in 2008 which she used to launch a now nation-wide restorative youth diversion program. For her decades of work in conflict transformation and restorative justice, she was named a 2019 MacArthur Fellow.

During her many years as the Director of the Restorative Justice Project, sujatha helped communities across the nation implement restorative justice alternatives to juvenile detention and zero-tolerance school discipline policies. Today, she's dedicated to using this approach to end child sexual abuse and intimate partner violence. sujatha is a frequent guest lecturer at universities and conferences; she speaks publicly and inside prisons about her own experiences as a survivor of child sexual abuse and her path to forgiveness. She is working on her first book, Angry Long Enough, to be published by One World/Penguin Random House in 2026.

sujatha earned her A.B. from Harvard and Radcliffe Colleges, her J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania, and has held two federal district court clerkships. Her personal and research interests include the forgiveness of seemingly unforgivable acts and Buddhist notions of conflict transformation.

sujatha’s faith journey undergirds her justice work. A long-time Buddhist practitioner, she’s a lay member of the Gyuto Foundation, a Tibetan Buddhist Monastery in Richmond, CA, where she leads meditation on Monday nights. She makes her home in Berkeley, CA, with her partner of 28 years, Jason, and their 19-year-old child, Sathya.

Links:

]]> Angry Long Enough with sujatha baliga Tenzin Chogkyi, sujatha baliga 01:10:02 I first met sujatha baliga many years ago when she led a weekend training on the council process at a Buddhist center in Sacramento, although I had heard of her and her work in restorative justice long before. We have connected many times over the subsequent years in both Buddhist and secular spaces, and share a commitment to conflict resolution and exploring how Buddhist principles can be made accessible to everyone through the development of secular programs, like sujatha’s forthcoming “Spiritual Fitness” program which we discuss in the podcast. I felt deeply honored that sujatha accepted my invitation to be part of “Voices of Love” and appreciate the wisdom and passion she brings to these topics. Content notice: sujatha’s work involves restorative processes with situations of intimate partner violence and child sexual abuse, including her own experience, so this episode will refer at times to these experiences. I first met sujatha baliga many years ago when she led a weekend training on the council process at a Buddhist center in Sacramento, although I had heard of her and her work in restorative justice long before. We have connected many times over the subsequent years in both Buddhist and secular spaces, and share a commitment to conflict resolution and exploring how Buddhist principles can be made accessible to everyone through the development of secular programs, like sujatha’s forthcoming “Spiritual Fitness” program which we discuss in the podcast. I felt deeply honored that sujatha accepted my invitation to be part of “Voices of Love” and appreciate the wisdom and passion she brings to these topics. Content notice: sujatha’s work involves restorative processes with situations of intimate partner violence and child sexual abuse, including her own experience, so this episode will refer at times to these experiences. false full 44 18342c93-0882-4731-a797-2936ac977e70 It's Time to Talk About Peace with Rabbi Paula Marcus It’s Time to Talk About Peace with Rabbi Paula Marcus

I met Rabbi Paula Marcus, senior rabbi of Temple Beth El in Aptos, CA, not long after returning to the Santa Cruz area in 2018. I was looking for ways to connect to interfaith social justice work in the area, and in every group I joined, Rabbi Paula was there! I remember our first meeting at an event organized by Partners in Caring, a project of the Hospice of Santa Cruz County to support faith leaders offering end-of-life care. It was like meeting an old friend, and I’ve treasured our connection and the meaningful interfaith events we’ve been part of together in the years since.

In this conversation, Rabbi Paula speaks about her childhood and some important early influences in her life, her decision to move to Santa Cruz and become involved in the community here in various ways, and her lifelong commitment to social justice activism and its expression through music and creativity. We talk about our commitment to bridge building and peacemaking, even when progress is difficult to see, and what gives us hope to continue with this work.

Rabbi Paula has been active for years (26 to be exact, as I learned during this conversation) in working for peace in Israel/Palestine. She has been leading pilgrimages in conjunction with a tour agency called MEJDI, (Arabic for “to honor”) and has been supporting the work of two peace activists, Palestinian Aziz Abu Sarah and Israeli Maoz Inon, who both lost family to the conflict. A book about their collaboration called The Future is Peace is forthcoming (see the links below for more information about Aziz and Maoz and peacebuilding organizations that Rabbi Paula is involved with).

Rabbi Paula Marcus’s bio:

Senior Rabbi Paula Marcus has served Temple Beth El since 1979, first as a teacher in the religious school and the preschool, then as a co-principal of the religious school, then as a congregational cantor, and as Rabbi beginning in May 2004, upon being ordained by the Academy for Jewish Religion in Los Angeles. She has apprenticed with cantors in the U.S. and Israel, and she received her BA in Judaic studies from SUNY at Binghamton. She also has a masters degree in Rabbinic studies from the Academy of Jewish Religion. Rabbi Marcus chairs the Ethics Committee of OHALAH-The Association of Rabbis for Jewish Renewal. She demonstrates her commitment to exploring spiituality and learning as rabbi, cantor, worship service leader, teacher, peacemaker and social justice activist.

Please click here to read some of Rabbi Paula's sermons and writings.

Links:

And links to some of the people and organizations mentioned in the podcast:

]]> Sun, 1 Feb 2026 22:25:03 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Tenzin Chogkyi) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/its-time-to-talk-about-peace-bRuEk4ON It’s Time to Talk About Peace with Rabbi Paula Marcus

I met Rabbi Paula Marcus, senior rabbi of Temple Beth El in Aptos, CA, not long after returning to the Santa Cruz area in 2018. I was looking for ways to connect to interfaith social justice work in the area, and in every group I joined, Rabbi Paula was there! I remember our first meeting at an event organized by Partners in Caring, a project of the Hospice of Santa Cruz County to support faith leaders offering end-of-life care. It was like meeting an old friend, and I’ve treasured our connection and the meaningful interfaith events we’ve been part of together in the years since.

In this conversation, Rabbi Paula speaks about her childhood and some important early influences in her life, her decision to move to Santa Cruz and become involved in the community here in various ways, and her lifelong commitment to social justice activism and its expression through music and creativity. We talk about our commitment to bridge building and peacemaking, even when progress is difficult to see, and what gives us hope to continue with this work.

Rabbi Paula has been active for years (26 to be exact, as I learned during this conversation) in working for peace in Israel/Palestine. She has been leading pilgrimages in conjunction with a tour agency called MEJDI, (Arabic for “to honor”) and has been supporting the work of two peace activists, Palestinian Aziz Abu Sarah and Israeli Maoz Inon, who both lost family to the conflict. A book about their collaboration called The Future is Peace is forthcoming (see the links below for more information about Aziz and Maoz and peacebuilding organizations that Rabbi Paula is involved with).

Rabbi Paula Marcus’s bio:

Senior Rabbi Paula Marcus has served Temple Beth El since 1979, first as a teacher in the religious school and the preschool, then as a co-principal of the religious school, then as a congregational cantor, and as Rabbi beginning in May 2004, upon being ordained by the Academy for Jewish Religion in Los Angeles. She has apprenticed with cantors in the U.S. and Israel, and she received her BA in Judaic studies from SUNY at Binghamton. She also has a masters degree in Rabbinic studies from the Academy of Jewish Religion. Rabbi Marcus chairs the Ethics Committee of OHALAH-The Association of Rabbis for Jewish Renewal. She demonstrates her commitment to exploring spiituality and learning as rabbi, cantor, worship service leader, teacher, peacemaker and social justice activist.

Please click here to read some of Rabbi Paula's sermons and writings.

Links:

And links to some of the people and organizations mentioned in the podcast:

]]> It's Time to Talk About Peace with Rabbi Paula Marcus Tenzin Chogkyi 01:04:09 In this conversation, Rabbi Paula speaks about her childhood and some important early influences in her life, her decision to move to Santa Cruz and become involved in the community here in various ways, and her lifelong commitment to social justice activism and its expression through music and creativity. We talk about our commitment to bridge building and peacemaking, even when progress is difficult to see, and what gives us hope to continue with this work. In this conversation, Rabbi Paula speaks about her childhood and some important early influences in her life, her decision to move to Santa Cruz and become involved in the community here in various ways, and her lifelong commitment to social justice activism and its expression through music and creativity. We talk about our commitment to bridge building and peacemaking, even when progress is difficult to see, and what gives us hope to continue with this work. false full 43 bea89702-5db2-4bfb-9abc-9a33849634ce Staying Curious, with Andrew Purchin Andrew Purchin is a citizen artist whose practice is rooted in mixed media art, dance improvisation, film and psychotherapy. He graduated with a B.A in his own major, “The Arts and Social Action” from UC Santa Cruz in 1985 and a Masters Degree in Social Work from San Francisco State University in 1990.  With his Creative Listening Project, Purchin paints, listens and encourages creativity at sites where there can be grief, discord and celebration.  A  creative listening internet friendship led Purchin to travel Pakistan to create and exhibit  "Encounters on the Frontier” with artist Mohsin Shafi at the National College of Arts in Pakistan in 2014 and for Shafi to join Purchin to create and exhibit “Upsidedownland” at the Radius Gallery in Santa Cruz in 2015.

Purchin collaborated with the public as they marked on The Curious Scroll at the Republican and Democratic National Conventions in 2016 and in Santa Cruz County before the 2018 election. Purchin received the 2020 Ron Kovic Peace Prize for his short documentary, The Curious Scroll.  Purchin is a 2022 recipient of a Santa Cruz City Arts Recovery and Design Grant for his social practice and documentary project about our housing crisis, “What’s Home? Creative Listening Across Differences.”  This project also garnered a grant from the Awesome Foundation of Santa Cruz in 2023.

 Links to Andrew’s projects:

https://www.andrewpurchin.com/

https://www.youtube.com/aPurchin

https://www.instagram.com/apurchin/

]]> Sun, 23 Nov 2025 16:14:49 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Andrew Purchin, Tenzin Chogkyi, Greg Morris) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/staying-curious-with-andrew-purchin-pHjAZCV8 Andrew Purchin is a citizen artist whose practice is rooted in mixed media art, dance improvisation, film and psychotherapy. He graduated with a B.A in his own major, “The Arts and Social Action” from UC Santa Cruz in 1985 and a Masters Degree in Social Work from San Francisco State University in 1990.  With his Creative Listening Project, Purchin paints, listens and encourages creativity at sites where there can be grief, discord and celebration.  A  creative listening internet friendship led Purchin to travel Pakistan to create and exhibit  "Encounters on the Frontier” with artist Mohsin Shafi at the National College of Arts in Pakistan in 2014 and for Shafi to join Purchin to create and exhibit “Upsidedownland” at the Radius Gallery in Santa Cruz in 2015.

Purchin collaborated with the public as they marked on The Curious Scroll at the Republican and Democratic National Conventions in 2016 and in Santa Cruz County before the 2018 election. Purchin received the 2020 Ron Kovic Peace Prize for his short documentary, The Curious Scroll.  Purchin is a 2022 recipient of a Santa Cruz City Arts Recovery and Design Grant for his social practice and documentary project about our housing crisis, “What’s Home? Creative Listening Across Differences.”  This project also garnered a grant from the Awesome Foundation of Santa Cruz in 2023.

 Links to Andrew’s projects:

https://www.andrewpurchin.com/

https://www.youtube.com/aPurchin

https://www.instagram.com/apurchin/

]]> Staying Curious, with Andrew Purchin Andrew Purchin, Tenzin Chogkyi, Greg Morris 01:16:55 Welcome to the first episode of our new podcast series, “Voices of Love: Bridging differences through compassionate conversations,” This project is a collaboration between Greg Morris, Mathew Divaris and Tenzin Chogkyi. We begin our series with local Santa Cruz artist Andrew Purchin. Tenzin was introduced to Andrew several years ago by a mutual friend, and felt inspired by his ongoing project, “The Curious Scroll.” When the opportunity arose to organize the “Let’s Talk About It” event which focused on conversations to bridge divides and reduce judgement and stereotypes, Andrew’s projects were a perfect fit, and we invited him to be part of those events, held in Santa Cruz in 2022 and 2023. Tenzin also attended the multimedia event he organized for his “What’s Home” project, looking at the impacts of homelessness on those who experience it, and on our community. Andrew’s use of art along with listening deeply to bridge divides is unique and inspiring, and we couldn’t think of anyone better to launch our “Voices of Love” podcast. Greg and Tenzin sat down with Andrew in his studio to paint together and have this conversation, which was recorded on September 16, 2025. Some of the events informing this conversation were the recent murder of Charlie Kirk, the conservative Evangelical Christian influencer, and an event that Andrew and Tenzin had attended the night before this conversation with a Palestinian and Israeli peace activist, Nitsan Joy Gordon and Jawdat Kasab. This event was organized by Rabbi Paula Marcus and was called Healing Across Divides, a perfect compliment to our later conversation in Andrew’s studio, and one we refer to frequently. We began our time together with a short ritual and with making art together, before shifting to a more directed conversation A fuller biography and some links to Andrew’s projects can be found in the show notes. We hope you enjoy this episode. Welcome to the first episode of our new podcast series, “Voices of Love: Bridging differences through compassionate conversations,” This project is a collaboration between Greg Morris, Mathew Divaris and Tenzin Chogkyi. We begin our series with local Santa Cruz artist Andrew Purchin. Tenzin was introduced to Andrew several years ago by a mutual friend, and felt inspired by his ongoing project, “The Curious Scroll.” When the opportunity arose to organize the “Let’s Talk About It” event which focused on conversations to bridge divides and reduce judgement and stereotypes, Andrew’s projects were a perfect fit, and we invited him to be part of those events, held in Santa Cruz in 2022 and 2023. Tenzin also attended the multimedia event he organized for his “What’s Home” project, looking at the impacts of homelessness on those who experience it, and on our community. Andrew’s use of art along with listening deeply to bridge divides is unique and inspiring, and we couldn’t think of anyone better to launch our “Voices of Love” podcast. Greg and Tenzin sat down with Andrew in his studio to paint together and have this conversation, which was recorded on September 16, 2025. Some of the events informing this conversation were the recent murder of Charlie Kirk, the conservative Evangelical Christian influencer, and an event that Andrew and Tenzin had attended the night before this conversation with a Palestinian and Israeli peace activist, Nitsan Joy Gordon and Jawdat Kasab. This event was organized by Rabbi Paula Marcus and was called Healing Across Divides, a perfect compliment to our later conversation in Andrew’s studio, and one we refer to frequently. We began our time together with a short ritual and with making art together, before shifting to a more directed conversation A fuller biography and some links to Andrew’s projects can be found in the show notes. We hope you enjoy this episode. false full 41 957ddf53-f050-4bb4-871e-9d359dc325ec Bridging and Belonging Tenzin Chogkyi  (she/her/hers) is a teacher of workshops and programs that bridge the worlds of Buddhist thought, contemplative practice, mental and emotional cultivation, and the latest research in the field of positive psychology.

Tenzin is especially interested in bringing the wisdom of Buddhism into modern culture and into alignment with modern cultural values such as racial and gender justice and environmental awareness. She feels strongly that a genuine and meaningful spiritual path includes not only personal transformation, but social and cultural transformation as well. She has been exploring the presentation of traditional teachings using modern pedagogical methods such as experiential exercises, dialogue and small group interaction.

Tenzin is a certified teacher of Compassion Cultivation Training, a secular compassion training program developed at Stanford University. She also teaches the Cultivating Emotional Balance program, a secular program using contemplative techniques drawn from Buddhism for managing emotions, developed at His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s request.
 

Greg Morris (pronouns: any) is a student and practitioner of bhakti yoga and Advaita Vedanta, as well as a student and devotee of the Tao Te Ching and the four gospels of the New Testament. A lifelong peace advocate and bridge-builder with childhood grounding in Unitarianism, Greg offers their spiritual practice as the foundation of their work as a teacher, as a coach, and as a management consultant specializing in diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging. 

Greg is grateful to be the recipient and beneficiary of several healing modalities, most notably Rosen Method (Marion Rosen, Robert Harry Rovin), Transformational Bodywork (Stephen Allario, Fred Mitouer), Holistic Sexuality (Marina Romero), Interpersonal Dynamics (David Bradford), and psychotherapy. Greg is a certified teacher of Compassion Cultivation Training (CCT™), a secular program developed by Stanford University’s Department of Neurosurgery under the guidance of Geshe Thupten Jinpa and at the request of His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama.

Mathew Divaris is a student of Buddhism who is deeply inspired by Tenzin's multidisciplinary approach of bringing the teachings to our troubled times in truly relevant, actionable ways.    When not helping out with the Unlocking True Happiness project, Mathew works as a marketing consultant.

]]> Fri, 28 Feb 2025 03:38:52 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Tenzin Chogkyi, Mathew Divaris, Greg Morris) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/bridging-and-belonging-t3MTomvl Tenzin Chogkyi  (she/her/hers) is a teacher of workshops and programs that bridge the worlds of Buddhist thought, contemplative practice, mental and emotional cultivation, and the latest research in the field of positive psychology.

Tenzin is especially interested in bringing the wisdom of Buddhism into modern culture and into alignment with modern cultural values such as racial and gender justice and environmental awareness. She feels strongly that a genuine and meaningful spiritual path includes not only personal transformation, but social and cultural transformation as well. She has been exploring the presentation of traditional teachings using modern pedagogical methods such as experiential exercises, dialogue and small group interaction.

Tenzin is a certified teacher of Compassion Cultivation Training, a secular compassion training program developed at Stanford University. She also teaches the Cultivating Emotional Balance program, a secular program using contemplative techniques drawn from Buddhism for managing emotions, developed at His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s request.
 

Greg Morris (pronouns: any) is a student and practitioner of bhakti yoga and Advaita Vedanta, as well as a student and devotee of the Tao Te Ching and the four gospels of the New Testament. A lifelong peace advocate and bridge-builder with childhood grounding in Unitarianism, Greg offers their spiritual practice as the foundation of their work as a teacher, as a coach, and as a management consultant specializing in diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging. 

Greg is grateful to be the recipient and beneficiary of several healing modalities, most notably Rosen Method (Marion Rosen, Robert Harry Rovin), Transformational Bodywork (Stephen Allario, Fred Mitouer), Holistic Sexuality (Marina Romero), Interpersonal Dynamics (David Bradford), and psychotherapy. Greg is a certified teacher of Compassion Cultivation Training (CCT™), a secular program developed by Stanford University’s Department of Neurosurgery under the guidance of Geshe Thupten Jinpa and at the request of His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama.

Mathew Divaris is a student of Buddhism who is deeply inspired by Tenzin's multidisciplinary approach of bringing the teachings to our troubled times in truly relevant, actionable ways.    When not helping out with the Unlocking True Happiness project, Mathew works as a marketing consultant.

]]> Bridging and Belonging Tenzin Chogkyi, Mathew Divaris, Greg Morris 01:09:53 We are living in a nation that is deeply fragmented along lines of political affiliation and ideology, race, class, religion, immigration status, and more. For the last few years, it seems that our government is at a standstill, with the divides so sharply defined that it is impossible to move forward. There have been very few attempts to bridge the divides; but, in our experience and in the research we have seen, a collective capacity to bridge the divides seems to be the only viable path to a sustainable future for our species. Our point of view is that recognizing, centering, investing in, and trusting in our common humanity, as the basis for community, is the essence of love. Is this the way it needs to be, with conflicting sides, winners and losers in a zero-sum game, or is there another way forward? When others’ beliefs and opinions differ from our own, it can be challenging to listen and be curious as to why people believe what they do. Yet, when we are able to truly hear each other, we can begin to see our common humanity and shared needs. But how do we do this? What are some of the perspectives and strategies we can use to bridge differences and connect with our common humanity? How can we overcome our resistance to extending compassion to others, even those we think of as threats or as enemies? What are the limits to bridging differences and extending compassion? Are there times that we shouldn’t try to bridge, or extend our compassion? In this episode of the Unlocking True Happiness podcast, we delve into these questions, discussing the opportunities and challenges of broadening our compassion and bridging differences. We are living in a nation that is deeply fragmented along lines of political affiliation and ideology, race, class, religion, immigration status, and more. For the last few years, it seems that our government is at a standstill, with the divides so sharply defined that it is impossible to move forward. There have been very few attempts to bridge the divides; but, in our experience and in the research we have seen, a collective capacity to bridge the divides seems to be the only viable path to a sustainable future for our species. Our point of view is that recognizing, centering, investing in, and trusting in our common humanity, as the basis for community, is the essence of love. Is this the way it needs to be, with conflicting sides, winners and losers in a zero-sum game, or is there another way forward? When others’ beliefs and opinions differ from our own, it can be challenging to listen and be curious as to why people believe what they do. Yet, when we are able to truly hear each other, we can begin to see our common humanity and shared needs. But how do we do this? What are some of the perspectives and strategies we can use to bridge differences and connect with our common humanity? How can we overcome our resistance to extending compassion to others, even those we think of as threats or as enemies? What are the limits to bridging differences and extending compassion? Are there times that we shouldn’t try to bridge, or extend our compassion? In this episode of the Unlocking True Happiness podcast, we delve into these questions, discussing the opportunities and challenges of broadening our compassion and bridging differences. false full 40 a69b7601-4061-4f67-863e-7b63a6d9543e Spiritual Lessons after the Storm with Deborah Eden Tull Tenzin and Eden spoke of a number of different resources in this episode which are listed below:

]]> Mon, 11 Nov 2024 15:07:24 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Tenzin Chogkyi, Deborah Eden Tull) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/spiritual-lessons-after-the-storm-with-eden-tull-bqEhWjCX Tenzin and Eden spoke of a number of different resources in this episode which are listed below:

]]> Spiritual Lessons after the Storm with Deborah Eden Tull Tenzin Chogkyi, Deborah Eden Tull 01:23:50 Deborah Eden Tull speaks to Tenzin Chogkyi is this deep and heartfelt conversation after losing her home, and almost losing her life, in Hurricane Helene. Eden speaks to her spiritual experience of the "lifequakes" that remind us of impermanence by truly shaking our sense of security. Deborah Eden Tull speaks to Tenzin Chogkyi is this deep and heartfelt conversation after losing her home, and almost losing her life, in Hurricane Helene. Eden speaks to her spiritual experience of the "lifequakes" that remind us of impermanence by truly shaking our sense of security. luminous darkness, unlocking true happiness, spirtuality, hurricane helene false full 39 d752778b-8030-4865-99c1-521d70c4f05e Holding Space with Eden Tull Fri, 8 Dec 2023 16:00:00 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Deborah Eden Tull, Tenzin Chogkyi) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/holding-space-with-eden-tull-NZzqteU7 Holding Space with Eden Tull Deborah Eden Tull, Tenzin Chogkyi 01:03:58 Back by popular demand, Deborah Eden Tull joins Tenzin for a timely conversation about how to hold space and stay present in deeply challenging times. Recorded at the beginning of the renewed conflict between Israel and Hamas, this episode shares deep insight on how we can navigate polarization and difficulty with compassion and engagement with our shared humanity. Back by popular demand, Deborah Eden Tull joins Tenzin for a timely conversation about how to hold space and stay present in deeply challenging times. Recorded at the beginning of the renewed conflict between Israel and Hamas, this episode shares deep insight on how we can navigate polarization and difficulty with compassion and engagement with our shared humanity. buddhism, luminous darkness, meditation, rewilding, shantideva false full 38 2a69e356-544a-421c-9cfc-c6f9e531d359 Let's Play Fri, 18 Aug 2023 15:32:27 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Tenzin Chogkyi) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/lets-play-eAJZIo2R Let's Play Tenzin Chogkyi 00:40:41 We're often led to believe that our highly-structured, thinking-oriented sides are what make us human, that "hard work" is of value above all else, and that play is simply something that young children do. However, research shows that play has incredible power is developing social bonds, fostering creativity, sparking joy and even helping to make positive changes to our epigenetics. In this episode, Tenzin explores the many types of play, the positives benefits, and how we can bring a sense of play to our own spiritual practice to make it more joyful. We're often led to believe that our highly-structured, thinking-oriented sides are what make us human, that "hard work" is of value above all else, and that play is simply something that young children do. However, research shows that play has incredible power is developing social bonds, fostering creativity, sparking joy and even helping to make positive changes to our epigenetics. In this episode, Tenzin explores the many types of play, the positives benefits, and how we can bring a sense of play to our own spiritual practice to make it more joyful. m, buddhism, joy, epigenetics, meditation, play false full 37 d367f6b2-94fb-4d5a-a0a8-a7e3f8464e4e The Power of the Apology Mon, 26 Jun 2023 20:55:46 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Tenzin Chogkyi) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/apology-00MXWLD1 The Power of the Apology Tenzin Chogkyi 00:31:51 No matter how mindful we are of our thoughts, speech and actions, being human means that we can sometimes act unwisely or hurt someone's feelings. Whether these mistakes are unintentional or not, they can lead to rifts in our relationships; and ultimately damage both our own contentment, as well as the cohesion of our community. In this episode, Tenzin shares the power of apologizing as a roadmap for forgiveness, healing and reconciliation; and then leads a reflection on the impact of both giving and receiving a wholehearted apology. No matter how mindful we are of our thoughts, speech and actions, being human means that we can sometimes act unwisely or hurt someone's feelings. Whether these mistakes are unintentional or not, they can lead to rifts in our relationships; and ultimately damage both our own contentment, as well as the cohesion of our community. In this episode, Tenzin shares the power of apologizing as a roadmap for forgiveness, healing and reconciliation; and then leads a reflection on the impact of both giving and receiving a wholehearted apology. apologizing, compassionate action, reconciliation, forgiveness, apologies false full 36 a6420397-10f2-4f1e-99fe-ece91b2905c8 Finding Hope through Tending to Relationships Nina Simons is the co-founder and Chief Relationship Officer at Bioneers, and leads its Everywoman’s Leadership program. Bioneers is a nonprofit that uses media, convening, and connecting to lift up visionary and practical solutions for many of our most pressing social and ecological challenges, revealing aregenerative and equitable future that’s within our reach today.  Nina is a social entrepreneur who is passionate about reinventing leadership, restoring the feminine, andco-creating a healthy, peaceful,and equitable world for all.  She speaks and teaches internationally at schools, conferences, and festivals, and co-facilitates transformative workshops and retreats for women that share practices for regenerative leadership through reclaiming wholeness and relational mindfulness

Her book Nature, Culture and the Sacred: A Woman Listens for Leadership offers inspiration for anyone who aspires to grow into or inhabit their own unique form of leadership with resilience and joy. The book draws on Simons’ own personal learning and extensive experience with women’s leadership development... to reconnect and defend people, nature and the land, both practically and spiritually.

]]> Mon, 5 Jun 2023 14:42:13 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Tenzin Chogkyi, Nina Simons) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/nature-culture-and-the-sacred-part-ii-2z5afKSF Nina Simons is the co-founder and Chief Relationship Officer at Bioneers, and leads its Everywoman’s Leadership program. Bioneers is a nonprofit that uses media, convening, and connecting to lift up visionary and practical solutions for many of our most pressing social and ecological challenges, revealing aregenerative and equitable future that’s within our reach today.  Nina is a social entrepreneur who is passionate about reinventing leadership, restoring the feminine, andco-creating a healthy, peaceful,and equitable world for all.  She speaks and teaches internationally at schools, conferences, and festivals, and co-facilitates transformative workshops and retreats for women that share practices for regenerative leadership through reclaiming wholeness and relational mindfulness

Her book Nature, Culture and the Sacred: A Woman Listens for Leadership offers inspiration for anyone who aspires to grow into or inhabit their own unique form of leadership with resilience and joy. The book draws on Simons’ own personal learning and extensive experience with women’s leadership development... to reconnect and defend people, nature and the land, both practically and spiritually.

]]> Finding Hope through Tending to Relationships Tenzin Chogkyi, Nina Simons 01:08:33 Join Nina Simons, co-founder of Bioneers, and Tenzin for the second part of their conversation about Nina’s new book and her important work (listen to our first conversation in Episode 34 of the Unlocking True Happiness podcast). In this conversation, Nina and Tenzin discuss intersecting systems of oppression and how they have led to our environmental crisis, and how we can get out of our multiple crises through relational collective engagement. And when this seems like unrelenting hard work, and we’re even afraid to engage, we must prioritize rest and rejuvenation, joy and play as a way to keep our work in the world sustainable. Nina also discusses her upcoming projects, including a “Sacred Activism” training she will be offering in collaboration with Eden Tull, another guest on our podcast. We hope you enjoy this conversation! Join Nina Simons, co-founder of Bioneers, and Tenzin for the second part of their conversation about Nina’s new book and her important work (listen to our first conversation in Episode 34 of the Unlocking True Happiness podcast). In this conversation, Nina and Tenzin discuss intersecting systems of oppression and how they have led to our environmental crisis, and how we can get out of our multiple crises through relational collective engagement. And when this seems like unrelenting hard work, and we’re even afraid to engage, we must prioritize rest and rejuvenation, joy and play as a way to keep our work in the world sustainable. Nina also discusses her upcoming projects, including a “Sacred Activism” training she will be offering in collaboration with Eden Tull, another guest on our podcast. We hope you enjoy this conversation! false full 35 c63a1638-01df-4a3b-b3cf-9a64400bd94b Nature, Culture and the Sacred with special guest Nina Simons Nina Simons is the co-founder and Chief Relationship Officer at Bioneers, and leads its Everywoman’s Leadership program. Bioneers is a nonprofit that uses media, convening, and connecting to lift up visionary and practical solutions for many of our most pressing social and ecological challenges, revealing aregenerative and equitable future that’s within our reach today.  Nina is a social entrepreneur who is passionate about reinventing leadership, restoring the feminine, andco-creating a healthy, peaceful,and equitable world for all.  She speaks and teaches internationally at schools, conferences, and festivals, and co-facilitates transformative workshops and retreats for women that share practices for regenerative leadership through reclaiming wholeness and relational mindfulness

Her book Nature, Culture and the Sacred: A Woman Listens for Leadership offers inspiration for anyone who aspires to grow into or inhabit their own unique form of leadership with resilience and joy. The book draws on Simons’ own personal learning and extensive experience with women’s leadership development... to reconnect and defend people, nature and the land, both practically and spiritually.

]]> Tue, 2 May 2023 18:36:31 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Nina Simons, Tenzin Chogkyi) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/nature-culture-and-the-sacred-NW9Wgt6W Nina Simons is the co-founder and Chief Relationship Officer at Bioneers, and leads its Everywoman’s Leadership program. Bioneers is a nonprofit that uses media, convening, and connecting to lift up visionary and practical solutions for many of our most pressing social and ecological challenges, revealing aregenerative and equitable future that’s within our reach today.  Nina is a social entrepreneur who is passionate about reinventing leadership, restoring the feminine, andco-creating a healthy, peaceful,and equitable world for all.  She speaks and teaches internationally at schools, conferences, and festivals, and co-facilitates transformative workshops and retreats for women that share practices for regenerative leadership through reclaiming wholeness and relational mindfulness

Her book Nature, Culture and the Sacred: A Woman Listens for Leadership offers inspiration for anyone who aspires to grow into or inhabit their own unique form of leadership with resilience and joy. The book draws on Simons’ own personal learning and extensive experience with women’s leadership development... to reconnect and defend people, nature and the land, both practically and spiritually.

]]> Nature, Culture and the Sacred with special guest Nina Simons Nina Simons, Tenzin Chogkyi 01:08:34 In this episode, Tenzin speaks to Nina Simons, co-founder of Bioneers and author of Nature, Culture and the Sacred: A Woman Listens for Leadership. In this episode, Tenzin speaks to Nina Simons, co-founder of Bioneers and author of Nature, Culture and the Sacred: A Woman Listens for Leadership. false full 34 30073818-b83b-42b3-8acb-efa9c49a523c Gratitude's Gifts Mon, 10 Apr 2023 19:25:54 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Tenzin Chogkyi) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/gratitudes-gifts-cw6A8yc_ Gratitude's Gifts Tenzin Chogkyi 00:43:48 In this episode, Tenzin explores the many gifts that gratitude can bring to our lives, helping to offset our natural negativity bias and bring more richness to our experiences and our relationships. She then shares some simple ideas on how we can cultivate our own practice of gratitude with an experiential meditation. In this episode, Tenzin explores the many gifts that gratitude can bring to our lives, helping to offset our natural negativity bias and bring more richness to our experiences and our relationships. She then shares some simple ideas on how we can cultivate our own practice of gratitude with an experiential meditation. positive emotions, buddhism, meditation, gratitude false full 33 7a6a1712-602a-4016-834c-a64671ac89f2 Luminous Darkness Part 2 with Deborah Eden Tull Luminous Darkness: An Engaged Buddhist Approach to Embracing the Unknown by Deborah Eden Tull is a resonant call to explore the darkness in life, in nature, and in consciousness—including difficult emotions like uncertainty, grief, fear, and xenophobia—through teachings, embodied meditations, and mindful inquiry that provide us with a powerful path to healing.

Darkness is deeply misunderstood in today’s world; yet it offers powerful medicine, serenity, strength, healing, and regeneration. All insight, vision, creativity, and revelation arise from darkness. It is through learning to stay present and meet the dark with curiosity rather than judgment that we connect to an unwavering light within. Welcoming darkness with curiosity, rather than fear or judgment, enables us to access our innate capacity for compassion and collective healing.

Dharma teacher, shamanic practitioner, and deep ecologist Deborah Eden Tull addresses the spiritual, ecological, psychological, and interpersonal ramifications of our bias towards light.

Tull explores the medicine of darkness for personal and collective healing, through topics such as:

• Befriending the Night: The Radiant Teachings of Darkness

• Honoring Our Pain for Our World

• Seeing in the Dark: The Quiet Power of Receptivity

• Dreams, Possibility, and Moral Imagination

• Releasing Fear—Embracing Emergence

Tull shows us how the labeling of darkness as “negative” becomes a collective excuse to justify avoiding everything that makes us uncomfortable: racism, spiritual bypass, environmental destruction. We can only find the radical path to wholeness by learning to embrace the interplayof both darkness and light.

About the Author

Zen meditation and mindfulness teacher, author, activist, and sustainability educator. Eden teaches the integration of compassionate awareness into every aspect of our lives. She spent seven years training as a Buddhist monk at a silent Zen monastery and has been teaching dharma for 19 years. Eden has also been living in, and teaching about, sustainable communities for over 25 years.

Her teaching style is grounded in compassionate awareness, experiential learning, inquiry, and an unwavering commitment to personal transformation. She teaches engaged awareness practice, which emphasizes the connection between personal awakening and global engagement. Eden draws upon teachings from the natural world and an embodied understanding of animism.

She is author of “Relational Mindfulness: A Handbook for Deepening Our Connection with Our Self, Each Other, and Our Planet” (Wisdom 2018) and “The Natural Kitchen: Your Guide for the Sustainable Food Revolution.” Her work has been featured in The Los Angeles Times, Tricycle, Yogi Times, GOOP, Shambhala Times, and The Ecologist. She also teaches The Work That Reconnects, a program created by Buddhist scholar Joanna Macy, and teaches for UCLA’s Mindful Awareness Research Center. Eden offers retreats, online courses, and consultations internationally.

Readers can connect with Deborah Eden Tull on Facebook, Instagram, and Goodreads.

To learn more, go to DeborahEdenTull.com.

]]> Mon, 20 Mar 2023 15:00:00 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Tenzin Chogkyi, Deborah Eden Tull) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/luminous-darkness-part-2-GoAozVN4 Luminous Darkness: An Engaged Buddhist Approach to Embracing the Unknown by Deborah Eden Tull is a resonant call to explore the darkness in life, in nature, and in consciousness—including difficult emotions like uncertainty, grief, fear, and xenophobia—through teachings, embodied meditations, and mindful inquiry that provide us with a powerful path to healing.

Darkness is deeply misunderstood in today’s world; yet it offers powerful medicine, serenity, strength, healing, and regeneration. All insight, vision, creativity, and revelation arise from darkness. It is through learning to stay present and meet the dark with curiosity rather than judgment that we connect to an unwavering light within. Welcoming darkness with curiosity, rather than fear or judgment, enables us to access our innate capacity for compassion and collective healing.

Dharma teacher, shamanic practitioner, and deep ecologist Deborah Eden Tull addresses the spiritual, ecological, psychological, and interpersonal ramifications of our bias towards light.

Tull explores the medicine of darkness for personal and collective healing, through topics such as:

• Befriending the Night: The Radiant Teachings of Darkness

• Honoring Our Pain for Our World

• Seeing in the Dark: The Quiet Power of Receptivity

• Dreams, Possibility, and Moral Imagination

• Releasing Fear—Embracing Emergence

Tull shows us how the labeling of darkness as “negative” becomes a collective excuse to justify avoiding everything that makes us uncomfortable: racism, spiritual bypass, environmental destruction. We can only find the radical path to wholeness by learning to embrace the interplayof both darkness and light.

About the Author

Zen meditation and mindfulness teacher, author, activist, and sustainability educator. Eden teaches the integration of compassionate awareness into every aspect of our lives. She spent seven years training as a Buddhist monk at a silent Zen monastery and has been teaching dharma for 19 years. Eden has also been living in, and teaching about, sustainable communities for over 25 years.

Her teaching style is grounded in compassionate awareness, experiential learning, inquiry, and an unwavering commitment to personal transformation. She teaches engaged awareness practice, which emphasizes the connection between personal awakening and global engagement. Eden draws upon teachings from the natural world and an embodied understanding of animism.

She is author of “Relational Mindfulness: A Handbook for Deepening Our Connection with Our Self, Each Other, and Our Planet” (Wisdom 2018) and “The Natural Kitchen: Your Guide for the Sustainable Food Revolution.” Her work has been featured in The Los Angeles Times, Tricycle, Yogi Times, GOOP, Shambhala Times, and The Ecologist. She also teaches The Work That Reconnects, a program created by Buddhist scholar Joanna Macy, and teaches for UCLA’s Mindful Awareness Research Center. Eden offers retreats, online courses, and consultations internationally.

Readers can connect with Deborah Eden Tull on Facebook, Instagram, and Goodreads.

To learn more, go to DeborahEdenTull.com.

]]> Luminous Darkness Part 2 with Deborah Eden Tull Tenzin Chogkyi, Deborah Eden Tull 00:50:27 In this episode, Tenzin continued her conversation with Zen meditation teacher, author, activist and sustainability educator Deborah Eden Tull, continuing a rich conversation about her new book, Luminous Darkness: An Engaged Buddhist Approach to Embracing the Unknown. Darkness is deeply misunderstood in today’s world; yet it offers powerful medicine, serenity, strength, healing, and regeneration. All insight, vision, creativity, and revelation arise from darkness. It is through learning to stay present and meet the dark with curiosity rather than judgment that we connect to an unwavering light within. Welcoming darkness with curiosity, rather than fear or judgment, enables us to access our innate capacity for compassion and collective healing. Tull shows us how the labeling of darkness as “negative” becomes a collective excuse to justify avoiding everything that makes us uncomfortable: racism, spiritual bypass, environmental destruction. We can only find the radical path to wholeness by learning to embrace the interplay of both darkness and light. In this episode, Tenzin continued her conversation with Zen meditation teacher, author, activist and sustainability educator Deborah Eden Tull, continuing a rich conversation about her new book, Luminous Darkness: An Engaged Buddhist Approach to Embracing the Unknown. Darkness is deeply misunderstood in today’s world; yet it offers powerful medicine, serenity, strength, healing, and regeneration. All insight, vision, creativity, and revelation arise from darkness. It is through learning to stay present and meet the dark with curiosity rather than judgment that we connect to an unwavering light within. Welcoming darkness with curiosity, rather than fear or judgment, enables us to access our innate capacity for compassion and collective healing. Tull shows us how the labeling of darkness as “negative” becomes a collective excuse to justify avoiding everything that makes us uncomfortable: racism, spiritual bypass, environmental destruction. We can only find the radical path to wholeness by learning to embrace the interplay of both darkness and light. false full 32 00a0773a-49d1-49e4-9df7-cbf2fe611c48 Making a Case for Compassion, with Special Guest Sara Schairer Sara is a contributing author to the book The Neuroscience of Learning and Development: Enhancing Creativity, Compassion, Critical Thinking and Peace in Education, and writes for Deepak Chopra’s Center for Wellbeing website.

 

Sara’s new book, A Case for Compassion: What Happens When We Prioritize People and the Planet, is available now.

]]> Wed, 22 Feb 2023 20:31:45 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Sara Schairer, Tenzin Chogkyi) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/making-a-case-for-compassion-UiPQVEdN Sara is a contributing author to the book The Neuroscience of Learning and Development: Enhancing Creativity, Compassion, Critical Thinking and Peace in Education, and writes for Deepak Chopra’s Center for Wellbeing website.

 

Sara’s new book, A Case for Compassion: What Happens When We Prioritize People and the Planet, is available now.

]]> Making a Case for Compassion, with Special Guest Sara Schairer Sara Schairer, Tenzin Chogkyi 00:57:27 This month, we are excited to have Sara Schairer, compassion educator, as our guest. Sara Schairer is the founder and executive director of Compassion It®, a nonprofit organization and global social movement whose mission is to inspire daily compassionate actions and attitudes.  A facilitator of the Compassion Cultivation Training® (CCT) course, Sara leads trainings for audiences of all walks of life, from corporate executives to inmates at correctional facilities. This month, we are excited to have Sara Schairer, compassion educator, as our guest. Sara Schairer is the founder and executive director of Compassion It®, a nonprofit organization and global social movement whose mission is to inspire daily compassionate actions and attitudes.  A facilitator of the Compassion Cultivation Training® (CCT) course, Sara leads trainings for audiences of all walks of life, from corporate executives to inmates at correctional facilities. compassion it!, buddhism, meditation, compassion false full 31 68c3594b-7ac2-4f63-a16d-7dec3b04ba1b Unlocking Compassion with Equanimity Dr. Joey Weber, who was raised in a Buddhist community in northern England, noticed that the focus in popular mindfulness programs was on the attentional training, and not as much emphasis was given to the “non-judgmental” aspect of mindfulness. He was so intrigued by this that he completed a PhD program devoted to the study of equanimity, the non-judgmental stance of mindfulness. His book, Mindfulness is Not Enough: Unlocking Compassion with Equanimity, is based on his research, and he also developed a six-week training program called Equanimity-based Compassionate Action.

Join us for our conversation with Dr. Weber, as we delve into the meaning of equanimity, what this quality can bring to our lives, and how it can inspire our own compassionate action.

]]> Thu, 19 Jan 2023 16:18:34 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Dr. Joey Weber, Tenzin Chogkyi) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/unlocking-compassion-with-equanimity-USg6fN_W Dr. Joey Weber, who was raised in a Buddhist community in northern England, noticed that the focus in popular mindfulness programs was on the attentional training, and not as much emphasis was given to the “non-judgmental” aspect of mindfulness. He was so intrigued by this that he completed a PhD program devoted to the study of equanimity, the non-judgmental stance of mindfulness. His book, Mindfulness is Not Enough: Unlocking Compassion with Equanimity, is based on his research, and he also developed a six-week training program called Equanimity-based Compassionate Action.

Join us for our conversation with Dr. Weber, as we delve into the meaning of equanimity, what this quality can bring to our lives, and how it can inspire our own compassionate action.

]]> Unlocking Compassion with Equanimity Dr. Joey Weber, Tenzin Chogkyi 00:55:37 Mindfulness meditation has become wildly popular in the last decade or two, and is taught in places as diverse as corporate board rooms, maximum security prisons, and everywhere in between. One of the standard definitions of mindfulness is “awareness that arises through paying attention, on purpose, in the present moment, non-judgmentally,” according Jon Kabat-Zinn, the founder of the popular program Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction. Mindfulness meditation has become wildly popular in the last decade or two, and is taught in places as diverse as corporate board rooms, maximum security prisons, and everywhere in between. One of the standard definitions of mindfulness is “awareness that arises through paying attention, on purpose, in the present moment, non-judgmentally,” according Jon Kabat-Zinn, the founder of the popular program Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction. equanimity, compassion, tenzin chogkyi, joey weber false full 30 c2097930-ea6d-455a-8a59-2f15676491f7 The Unexpected Gifts of Groundlessness Wed, 21 Dec 2022 22:54:43 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Tenzin Chogkyi, Mathew Divaris) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/the-unexpected-gifts-of-groundlessness-QxvjCszF The Unexpected Gifts of Groundlessness Tenzin Chogkyi, Mathew Divaris 00:57:31 The Buddhist teacher Pema Chodron says, in relation to contemplative practice, “We are being encouraged to remain open to the present groundless moment, to a direct, unarmored participation with our experience… How many of us feel ready to interrupt our habitual patterns, our almost instinctual ways of getting comfortable?” Many of us find the experience of groundlessness to be profoundly uncomfortable, and in the last few years we’ve experienced this feeling to an accelerated degree, with the changes brought about by the pandemic, the global financial crisis, political unrest, and so on. How do we remain open and view groundlessness as a gift, see the potential inherent in it, and embrace it? Join Tenzin Chogkyi and Mathew Divaris to explore the theme of groundlessness and how to bring it into the spiritual path. The Buddhist teacher Pema Chodron says, in relation to contemplative practice, “We are being encouraged to remain open to the present groundless moment, to a direct, unarmored participation with our experience… How many of us feel ready to interrupt our habitual patterns, our almost instinctual ways of getting comfortable?” Many of us find the experience of groundlessness to be profoundly uncomfortable, and in the last few years we’ve experienced this feeling to an accelerated degree, with the changes brought about by the pandemic, the global financial crisis, political unrest, and so on. How do we remain open and view groundlessness as a gift, see the potential inherent in it, and embrace it? Join Tenzin Chogkyi and Mathew Divaris to explore the theme of groundlessness and how to bring it into the spiritual path. buddhism, groundlessness, mindfulness false full 29 99a150bf-5d55-4526-bd83-b14b36b8841a Luminous Darkness - with special guest Deborah Eden Tull This is the episode that was aired on KSQD.org.  Checkout the full, 90 minute conversation in the next post.

Luminous Darkness: An Engaged Buddhist Approach to Embracing the Unknown by Deborah Eden Tull is a resonant call to explore the darkness in life, in nature, and in consciousness—including difficult emotions like uncertainty, grief, fear, and xenophobia—through teachings, embodied meditations, and mindful inquiry that provide us with a powerful path to healing.

Darkness is deeply misunderstood in today’s world; yet it offers powerful medicine, serenity, strength, healing, and regeneration. All insight, vision, creativity, and revelation arise from darkness. It is through learning to stay present and meet the dark with curiosity rather than judgment that we connect to an unwavering light within. Welcoming darkness with curiosity, rather than fear or judgment, enables us to access our innate capacity for compassion and collective healing.

Dharma teacher, shamanic practitioner, and deep ecologist Deborah Eden Tull addresses the spiritual, ecological, psychological, and interpersonal ramifications of our bias towards light.

Tull explores the medicine of darkness for personal and collective healing, through topics such as:

• Befriending the Night: The Radiant Teachings of Darkness

• Honoring Our Pain for Our World

• Seeing in the Dark: The Quiet Power of Receptivity

• Dreams, Possibility, and Moral Imagination

• Releasing Fear—Embracing Emergence

Tull shows us how the labeling of darkness as “negative” becomes a collective excuse to justify avoiding everything that makes us uncomfortable: racism, spiritual bypass, environmental destruction.  We can only find the radical path to wholeness by learning to embrace the interplayof both darkness and light.

About the Author

Zen meditation and mindfulness teacher, author, activist, and sustainability educator. Eden teaches the integration of compassionate awareness into every aspect of our lives. She spent seven years training as a Buddhist monk at a silent Zen monastery and has been teaching dharma for 19 years. Eden has also been living in, and teaching about, sustainable communities for over 25 years.

Her teaching style is grounded in compassionate awareness, experiential learning, inquiry, and an unwavering commitment to personal transformation. She teaches engaged awareness practice, which emphasizes the connection between personal awakening and global engagement. Eden draws upon teachings from the natural world and an embodied understanding of animism.

She is author of “Relational Mindfulness: A Handbook for Deepening Our Connection with Our Self, Each Other, and Our Planet” (Wisdom 2018) and “The Natural Kitchen: Your Guide for the Sustainable Food Revolution.” Her work has been featured in The Los Angeles Times, Tricycle, Yogi Times, GOOP, Shambhala Times, and The Ecologist. She also teaches The Work That Reconnects, a program created by Buddhist scholar Joanna Macy, and teaches for UCLA’s Mindful Awareness Research Center. Eden offers retreats, online courses, and consultations internationally.

Readers can connect with Deborah Eden Tull on Facebook, Instagram, and Goodreads. 

To learn more, go to DeborahEdenTull.com.

]]> Mon, 21 Nov 2022 16:00:00 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Deborah Eden Tull, Tenzin Chogkyi, Mathew Divaris) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/embracing-darkness-G47E9hic This is the episode that was aired on KSQD.org.  Checkout the full, 90 minute conversation in the next post.

Luminous Darkness: An Engaged Buddhist Approach to Embracing the Unknown by Deborah Eden Tull is a resonant call to explore the darkness in life, in nature, and in consciousness—including difficult emotions like uncertainty, grief, fear, and xenophobia—through teachings, embodied meditations, and mindful inquiry that provide us with a powerful path to healing.

Darkness is deeply misunderstood in today’s world; yet it offers powerful medicine, serenity, strength, healing, and regeneration. All insight, vision, creativity, and revelation arise from darkness. It is through learning to stay present and meet the dark with curiosity rather than judgment that we connect to an unwavering light within. Welcoming darkness with curiosity, rather than fear or judgment, enables us to access our innate capacity for compassion and collective healing.

Dharma teacher, shamanic practitioner, and deep ecologist Deborah Eden Tull addresses the spiritual, ecological, psychological, and interpersonal ramifications of our bias towards light.

Tull explores the medicine of darkness for personal and collective healing, through topics such as:

• Befriending the Night: The Radiant Teachings of Darkness

• Honoring Our Pain for Our World

• Seeing in the Dark: The Quiet Power of Receptivity

• Dreams, Possibility, and Moral Imagination

• Releasing Fear—Embracing Emergence

Tull shows us how the labeling of darkness as “negative” becomes a collective excuse to justify avoiding everything that makes us uncomfortable: racism, spiritual bypass, environmental destruction.  We can only find the radical path to wholeness by learning to embrace the interplayof both darkness and light.

About the Author

Zen meditation and mindfulness teacher, author, activist, and sustainability educator. Eden teaches the integration of compassionate awareness into every aspect of our lives. She spent seven years training as a Buddhist monk at a silent Zen monastery and has been teaching dharma for 19 years. Eden has also been living in, and teaching about, sustainable communities for over 25 years.

Her teaching style is grounded in compassionate awareness, experiential learning, inquiry, and an unwavering commitment to personal transformation. She teaches engaged awareness practice, which emphasizes the connection between personal awakening and global engagement. Eden draws upon teachings from the natural world and an embodied understanding of animism.

She is author of “Relational Mindfulness: A Handbook for Deepening Our Connection with Our Self, Each Other, and Our Planet” (Wisdom 2018) and “The Natural Kitchen: Your Guide for the Sustainable Food Revolution.” Her work has been featured in The Los Angeles Times, Tricycle, Yogi Times, GOOP, Shambhala Times, and The Ecologist. She also teaches The Work That Reconnects, a program created by Buddhist scholar Joanna Macy, and teaches for UCLA’s Mindful Awareness Research Center. Eden offers retreats, online courses, and consultations internationally.

Readers can connect with Deborah Eden Tull on Facebook, Instagram, and Goodreads. 

To learn more, go to DeborahEdenTull.com.

]]> Luminous Darkness - with special guest Deborah Eden Tull Deborah Eden Tull, Tenzin Chogkyi, Mathew Divaris 00:59:50 Darkness is deeply misunderstood in today’s world; yet it offers powerful medicine, serenity, strength, healing, and regeneration. All insight, vision, creativity, and revelation arise from darkness. It is through learning to stay present and meet the dark with curiosity rather than judgment that we connect to an unwavering light within. Welcoming darkness with curiosity, rather than fear or judgment, enables us to access our innate capacity for compassion and collective healing. Join us as we interview Zen meditation and mindfulness teacher, author, activist, and sustainability educator Deborah Eden Tull about her new book, Luminous Darkness: An Engaged Buddhist Approach to Embracing the Unknown.  RADIO VERSION Tull shows us how the labeling of darkness as “negative” becomes a collective excuse to justify avoiding everything that makes us uncomfortable: racism, spiritual bypass, environmental destruction. We can only find the radical path to wholeness by learning to embrace the interplay of both darkness and light. Darkness is deeply misunderstood in today’s world; yet it offers powerful medicine, serenity, strength, healing, and regeneration. All insight, vision, creativity, and revelation arise from darkness. It is through learning to stay present and meet the dark with curiosity rather than judgment that we connect to an unwavering light within. Welcoming darkness with curiosity, rather than fear or judgment, enables us to access our innate capacity for compassion and collective healing. Join us as we interview Zen meditation and mindfulness teacher, author, activist, and sustainability educator Deborah Eden Tull about her new book, Luminous Darkness: An Engaged Buddhist Approach to Embracing the Unknown.  RADIO VERSION Tull shows us how the labeling of darkness as “negative” becomes a collective excuse to justify avoiding everything that makes us uncomfortable: racism, spiritual bypass, environmental destruction. We can only find the radical path to wholeness by learning to embrace the interplay of both darkness and light. buddhism, meditation, nature, embracing darkness, animism, endarkment, mindfulness false full 27 7c094cfa-a331-4b7d-a7b2-b4b694f6b84e Luminous Darkness: EXTENDED EPISODE Luminous Darkness: An Engaged Buddhist Approach to Embracing the Unknown by Deborah Eden Tull is a resonant call to explore the darkness in life, in nature, and in consciousness—including difficult emotions like uncertainty, grief, fear, and xenophobia—through teachings, embodied meditations, and mindful inquiry that provide us with a powerful path to healing.

Darkness is deeply misunderstood in today’s world; yet it offers powerful medicine, serenity, strength, healing, and regeneration. All insight, vision, creativity, and revelation arise from darkness. It is through learning to stay present and meet the dark with curiosity rather than judgment that we connect to an unwavering light within. Welcoming darkness with curiosity, rather than fear or judgment, enables us to access our innate capacity for compassion and collective healing.

Dharma teacher, shamanic practitioner, and deep ecologist Deborah Eden Tull addresses the spiritual, ecological, psychological, and interpersonal ramifications of our bias towards light.

Tull explores the medicine of darkness for personal and collective healing, through topics such as:

• Befriending the Night: The Radiant Teachings of Darkness

• Honoring Our Pain for Our World

• Seeing in the Dark: The Quiet Power of Receptivity

• Dreams, Possibility, and Moral Imagination

• Releasing Fear—Embracing Emergence

Tull shows us how the labeling of darkness as “negative” becomes a collective excuse to justify avoiding everything that makes us uncomfortable: racism, spiritual bypass, environmental destruction.  We can only find the radical path to wholeness by learning to embrace the interplayof both darkness and light.

About the Author

Zen meditation and mindfulness teacher, author, activist, and sustainability educator. Eden teaches the integration of compassionate awareness into every aspect of our lives. She spent seven years training as a Buddhist monk at a silent Zen monastery and has been teaching dharma for 19 years. Eden has also been living in, and teaching about, sustainable communities for over 25 years.

Her teaching style is grounded in compassionate awareness, experiential learning, inquiry, and an unwavering commitment to personal transformation. She teaches engaged awareness practice, which emphasizes the connection between personal awakening and global engagement. Eden draws upon teachings from the natural world and an embodied understanding of animism.

She is author of “Relational Mindfulness: A Handbook for Deepening Our Connection with Our Self, Each Other, and Our Planet” (Wisdom 2018) and “The Natural Kitchen: Your Guide for the Sustainable Food Revolution.” Her work has been featured in The Los Angeles Times, Tricycle, Yogi Times, GOOP, Shambhala Times, and The Ecologist. She also teaches The Work That Reconnects, a program created by Buddhist scholar Joanna Macy, and teaches for UCLA’s Mindful Awareness Research Center. Eden offers retreats, online courses, and consultations internationally.

Readers can connect with Deborah Eden Tull on Facebook, Instagram, and Goodreads. 

To learn more, go to DeborahEdenTull.com.

 

]]> Mon, 21 Nov 2022 16:00:00 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Tenzin Chogkyi, Mathew Divaris, Deborah Eden Tull) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/luminous-darkness-extended-jttF4xc8 Luminous Darkness: An Engaged Buddhist Approach to Embracing the Unknown by Deborah Eden Tull is a resonant call to explore the darkness in life, in nature, and in consciousness—including difficult emotions like uncertainty, grief, fear, and xenophobia—through teachings, embodied meditations, and mindful inquiry that provide us with a powerful path to healing.

Darkness is deeply misunderstood in today’s world; yet it offers powerful medicine, serenity, strength, healing, and regeneration. All insight, vision, creativity, and revelation arise from darkness. It is through learning to stay present and meet the dark with curiosity rather than judgment that we connect to an unwavering light within. Welcoming darkness with curiosity, rather than fear or judgment, enables us to access our innate capacity for compassion and collective healing.

Dharma teacher, shamanic practitioner, and deep ecologist Deborah Eden Tull addresses the spiritual, ecological, psychological, and interpersonal ramifications of our bias towards light.

Tull explores the medicine of darkness for personal and collective healing, through topics such as:

• Befriending the Night: The Radiant Teachings of Darkness

• Honoring Our Pain for Our World

• Seeing in the Dark: The Quiet Power of Receptivity

• Dreams, Possibility, and Moral Imagination

• Releasing Fear—Embracing Emergence

Tull shows us how the labeling of darkness as “negative” becomes a collective excuse to justify avoiding everything that makes us uncomfortable: racism, spiritual bypass, environmental destruction.  We can only find the radical path to wholeness by learning to embrace the interplayof both darkness and light.

About the Author

Zen meditation and mindfulness teacher, author, activist, and sustainability educator. Eden teaches the integration of compassionate awareness into every aspect of our lives. She spent seven years training as a Buddhist monk at a silent Zen monastery and has been teaching dharma for 19 years. Eden has also been living in, and teaching about, sustainable communities for over 25 years.

Her teaching style is grounded in compassionate awareness, experiential learning, inquiry, and an unwavering commitment to personal transformation. She teaches engaged awareness practice, which emphasizes the connection between personal awakening and global engagement. Eden draws upon teachings from the natural world and an embodied understanding of animism.

She is author of “Relational Mindfulness: A Handbook for Deepening Our Connection with Our Self, Each Other, and Our Planet” (Wisdom 2018) and “The Natural Kitchen: Your Guide for the Sustainable Food Revolution.” Her work has been featured in The Los Angeles Times, Tricycle, Yogi Times, GOOP, Shambhala Times, and The Ecologist. She also teaches The Work That Reconnects, a program created by Buddhist scholar Joanna Macy, and teaches for UCLA’s Mindful Awareness Research Center. Eden offers retreats, online courses, and consultations internationally.

Readers can connect with Deborah Eden Tull on Facebook, Instagram, and Goodreads. 

To learn more, go to DeborahEdenTull.com.

 

]]> Luminous Darkness: EXTENDED EPISODE Tenzin Chogkyi, Mathew Divaris, Deborah Eden Tull 01:30:10 FULL EXTENDED EPISODE Darkness is deeply misunderstood in today’s world; yet it offers powerful medicine, serenity, strength, healing, and regeneration. All insight, vision, creativity, and revelation arise from darkness. It is through learning to stay present and meet the dark with curiosity rather than judgment that we connect to an unwavering light within. Welcoming darkness with curiosity, rather than fear or judgment, enables us to access our innate capacity for compassion and collective healing. Join us as we interview Zen meditation and mindfulness teacher, author, activist, and sustainability educator Deborah Eden Tull about her new book, Luminous Darkness: An Engaged Buddhist Approach to Embracing the Unknown.  Tull shows us how the labeling of darkness as “negative” becomes a collective excuse to justify avoiding everything that makes us uncomfortable: racism, spiritual bypass, environmental destruction. We can only find the radical path to wholeness by learning to embrace the interplay of both darkness and light. FULL EXTENDED EPISODE Darkness is deeply misunderstood in today’s world; yet it offers powerful medicine, serenity, strength, healing, and regeneration. All insight, vision, creativity, and revelation arise from darkness. It is through learning to stay present and meet the dark with curiosity rather than judgment that we connect to an unwavering light within. Welcoming darkness with curiosity, rather than fear or judgment, enables us to access our innate capacity for compassion and collective healing. Join us as we interview Zen meditation and mindfulness teacher, author, activist, and sustainability educator Deborah Eden Tull about her new book, Luminous Darkness: An Engaged Buddhist Approach to Embracing the Unknown.  Tull shows us how the labeling of darkness as “negative” becomes a collective excuse to justify avoiding everything that makes us uncomfortable: racism, spiritual bypass, environmental destruction. We can only find the radical path to wholeness by learning to embrace the interplay of both darkness and light. false full 28 c17489b0-52a2-44d4-b46d-2673c2292377 Reclaiming Joy Mon, 17 Oct 2022 15:00:00 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Ven Tenzin Chogkyi, Mathew Divaris) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/reclaiming-joy-VC_ucOIb Reclaiming Joy Ven Tenzin Chogkyi, Mathew Divaris 00:53:42 What is the role of joy on the spiritual path? The bodhisattva path and the path of compassion require us to have an awareness of the suffering of beings – are joy and compassion contradictory? Or can joy be used to sustain our spiritual path and practice? Join us for an exploration of the theme of joy on the spiritual path with Tenzin Chogkyi, who will draw from sources as diverse as 8th Century Indian master Shantideva, research psychologist Jonathan Haidt, and poet Ross Gay. What is the role of joy on the spiritual path? The bodhisattva path and the path of compassion require us to have an awareness of the suffering of beings – are joy and compassion contradictory? Or can joy be used to sustain our spiritual path and practice? Join us for an exploration of the theme of joy on the spiritual path with Tenzin Chogkyi, who will draw from sources as diverse as 8th Century Indian master Shantideva, research psychologist Jonathan Haidt, and poet Ross Gay. ross gay, jonathan haidt, kristin masters, buddhism, joy, meditation, spiritual path, unlocking true happiness, mindfulness false full 26 2c2c4f2c-c730-4b08-b96c-f2b0db3f68ec Cultivating Emotional Balance with guest Dr. Eve Ekman Fri, 26 Aug 2022 12:41:09 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Tenzin Chogkyi, Dr Eve Ekman) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/cultivating-emotional-balance-uHbR0PyL Cultivating Emotional Balance with guest Dr. Eve Ekman Tenzin Chogkyi, Dr Eve Ekman 00:57:18 Our emotions bring us our greatest joys and our deepest sorrows. We wouldn't survive without them, and yet they can also cause us to harm others and ourselves. What is the purpose of emotions, and how can we cultivate more emotional balance? Join us for this conversation with well-known emotions researcher and educator, Dr. Eve Ekman, as we explore these questions. We will also discuss the role of contemplative practice, how our emotions are influenced by our position in the social hierarchy, and Dr. Ekman's "go-to" emotional regulation strategies. Our emotions bring us our greatest joys and our deepest sorrows. We wouldn't survive without them, and yet they can also cause us to harm others and ourselves. What is the purpose of emotions, and how can we cultivate more emotional balance? Join us for this conversation with well-known emotions researcher and educator, Dr. Eve Ekman, as we explore these questions. We will also discuss the role of contemplative practice, how our emotions are influenced by our position in the social hierarchy, and Dr. Ekman's "go-to" emotional regulation strategies. buddhism, meditation, emotions, secular ethics, mindfulness false full 25 a835e58b-efb7-4b4d-b517-1f71c1aeb372 The Case for American Pluralism She also talks about an upcoming event "Let's Talk About It: Finding common threads through conversation" to be held at the MAH on Saturday, July 23, 2022 from 2:00 to 6:00 pm, which will be based on these principles and provide the opportunity for members of the public to have conversations with people representing misunderstood identities.

Find out more here.

]]> Tue, 19 Jul 2022 14:00:00 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Mathew Divaris, Ven Tenzin Chogkyi) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/american-pluralism-7XyUwmEU She also talks about an upcoming event "Let's Talk About It: Finding common threads through conversation" to be held at the MAH on Saturday, July 23, 2022 from 2:00 to 6:00 pm, which will be based on these principles and provide the opportunity for members of the public to have conversations with people representing misunderstood identities.

Find out more here.

]]> The Case for American Pluralism Mathew Divaris, Ven Tenzin Chogkyi 00:54:28 The motto of the United States, E pluribus unum (“Out of Many, One”) speaks to a pluralistic democracy with protections for every citizen, and a freedom from the religious tyranny that gripped much of Europe during the time of the country’s founding. Yet, for many, this promise is being undermined by a small segment of the population insistent on superimposing its own moral values onto the wider population, resulting in a number of recent reversals that unwind decades of civil rights progress. In this conversation, Ven Tenzin shares how we can help foster understanding and compassion in an increasingly polarized civic climate by recognizing the common humanity in our fellow citizens, while at the same time holding our ground. The motto of the United States, E pluribus unum (“Out of Many, One”) speaks to a pluralistic democracy with protections for every citizen, and a freedom from the religious tyranny that gripped much of Europe during the time of the country’s founding. Yet, for many, this promise is being undermined by a small segment of the population insistent on superimposing its own moral values onto the wider population, resulting in a number of recent reversals that unwind decades of civil rights progress. In this conversation, Ven Tenzin shares how we can help foster understanding and compassion in an increasingly polarized civic climate by recognizing the common humanity in our fellow citizens, while at the same time holding our ground. buddhism, pluralism, secular ethics, christian nationalism false full 24 18d6cc60-a40c-439c-bc50-c3b2b0758b5c Acceptance is not Complacency Mon, 20 Jun 2022 13:56:00 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Ven Tenzin Chogkyi, Mathew Divaris) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/acceptance-is-not-complacency-S2R2EoNv Acceptance is not Complacency Ven Tenzin Chogkyi, Mathew Divaris 00:54:57 In these uncertain times, our roles as individuals in the sweeping events washing over the world stage can feel deeply unclear, sometimes frightening and frequently overwhelming.  It is tempting to respond to these often painful situations by vacillating between anger and complacency. Buddhist teachings can offer insight into accepting “what is” while developing the capacity for equanimity and the courage for wise action.  Join Ven Tenzin Chogkyi and Mathew Divaris in a lively conversation originally aired on KSQD Santa Cruz where we navigate the nuances of accepting where we are, while cultivating a wish for positive transformation and avoiding the traps of striving and complacency. In these uncertain times, our roles as individuals in the sweeping events washing over the world stage can feel deeply unclear, sometimes frightening and frequently overwhelming.  It is tempting to respond to these often painful situations by vacillating between anger and complacency. Buddhist teachings can offer insight into accepting “what is” while developing the capacity for equanimity and the courage for wise action.  Join Ven Tenzin Chogkyi and Mathew Divaris in a lively conversation originally aired on KSQD Santa Cruz where we navigate the nuances of accepting where we are, while cultivating a wish for positive transformation and avoiding the traps of striving and complacency. false full 23 7ce963d0-f87c-4083-a1a3-c13fb58e0bfd Words Matter: The Power of Skillful Speech Thu, 2 Jun 2022 13:00:00 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Ven Tenzin Chogkyi) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/right-speech-ioZK9PNF Words Matter: The Power of Skillful Speech Ven Tenzin Chogkyi 00:35:43 The concept of Right Speech (or "Skillful Speech") is core to many Buddhist teachings about how to live an ethical life and avoid causing harm. In our hyperconnected world, our ability to communicate beyond face-to-face has increased exponentially, and navigating our own speech (and written words) is important because of the wide-ranging ramifications that our words can have on others, as well as on our own minds. In this talk and meditation, Ven Tenzin takes us through the practical advice given in the traditional teachings so that we can exercise our communication with skill and compassion. The concept of Right Speech (or "Skillful Speech") is core to many Buddhist teachings about how to live an ethical life and avoid causing harm. In our hyperconnected world, our ability to communicate beyond face-to-face has increased exponentially, and navigating our own speech (and written words) is important because of the wide-ranging ramifications that our words can have on others, as well as on our own minds. In this talk and meditation, Ven Tenzin takes us through the practical advice given in the traditional teachings so that we can exercise our communication with skill and compassion. skillful speech, buddhism, meditation, right speech false full 22 84fbe032-0f25-4515-ac66-0bf6de272591 The Four Virtues of the Heart This is borrowed from the Reflections on Buddhism show with Ven Tenzin Chogkyi that airs monthly at KSQD.org.  Find past episodes at UnlockingTrueHappiness.org.

]]> Mon, 16 May 2022 19:11:51 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Ven Tenzin Chogkyi, Mathew Divaris) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/the-four-virtues-of-the-heart-PzUKgTp_ This is borrowed from the Reflections on Buddhism show with Ven Tenzin Chogkyi that airs monthly at KSQD.org.  Find past episodes at UnlockingTrueHappiness.org.

]]> The Four Virtues of the Heart Ven Tenzin Chogkyi, Mathew Divaris 00:59:45 His Holiness the Dalai Lama has often commented that the foundation of Buddhist practice is cultivating a good heart. As important as mindfulness and concentration meditations are within the Buddhist tradition, it is crucial to balance such practices with the cultivation and development of altruism, good will and care. The practice of the Four Immeasurables is the ideal technique for achieving this goal. The Four Immeasurables, or the Four Brahmaviharas, as they are called in the Pali tradition, are loving-kindness, compassion, empathetic joy, and equanimity. These characteristics are essential qualities that when developed lead to constructive emotions, well-being and genuine happiness. Join Ven. Tenzin and host Mathew Divaris for a conversation about these universal human values, how to develop them, obstacles that may arise, and how they support each other. His Holiness the Dalai Lama has often commented that the foundation of Buddhist practice is cultivating a good heart. As important as mindfulness and concentration meditations are within the Buddhist tradition, it is crucial to balance such practices with the cultivation and development of altruism, good will and care. The practice of the Four Immeasurables is the ideal technique for achieving this goal. The Four Immeasurables, or the Four Brahmaviharas, as they are called in the Pali tradition, are loving-kindness, compassion, empathetic joy, and equanimity. These characteristics are essential qualities that when developed lead to constructive emotions, well-being and genuine happiness. Join Ven. Tenzin and host Mathew Divaris for a conversation about these universal human values, how to develop them, obstacles that may arise, and how they support each other. false full 21 bee6ccb2-aaca-4530-8433-3382713aa745 The Neuroplasticity of Perception Mon, 2 May 2022 12:27:50 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Ven Tenzin Chogkyi) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/the-neuroplasticity-of-perception-998_sZWE The Neuroplasticity of Perception Ven Tenzin Chogkyi 00:37:11 We’re raised to believe that our perceptions of the world around us has an objective quality, but both Buddhism and modern neuroscience agree that our perceptions can frequently be distorted, and these distortions can cause great suffering. This "naive realism” — the belief that the world exists in the way it appears to us — is so innate to many of us, yet our beliefs, past experiences and emotional states can dramatically alter how we perceive experiences. In this informative session, Ven Tenzin discusses the many ways that our minds can play tricks on us, particularly when it comes to the impact of experiences that we perceive as negative, and shares a simple practice that can help balance and enrich our minds by reinforcing the impact of positive experiences. We’re raised to believe that our perceptions of the world around us has an objective quality, but both Buddhism and modern neuroscience agree that our perceptions can frequently be distorted, and these distortions can cause great suffering. This "naive realism” — the belief that the world exists in the way it appears to us — is so innate to many of us, yet our beliefs, past experiences and emotional states can dramatically alter how we perceive experiences. In this informative session, Ven Tenzin discusses the many ways that our minds can play tricks on us, particularly when it comes to the impact of experiences that we perceive as negative, and shares a simple practice that can help balance and enrich our minds by reinforcing the impact of positive experiences. buddhist world view, buddhism, neuroplasticity, neuroscience, meditation, perception, mindfulness false full 20 39c49fc0-2020-4b6c-be32-199e7e2ce3ae Mindfulness of Our Motivations Mon, 21 Mar 2022 15:00:00 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Ven Tenzin Chogkyi) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/the-eight-worldly-concerns-5jp5mTA0 Mindfulness of Our Motivations Ven Tenzin Chogkyi 00:40:41 In this episode, Ven Tenzin explores the Eight Worldly Concerns, a set of four dyads that correspond to many of the deeply held hopes and fears that drive the actions of all beings. As we engage with the spiritual path, or even the mundane decisions of the day-to-day, a clear understanding of these forms of attachment and aversion can serve as a way to become mindful of our motivations and bring clarity and skillfulness to our actions. In this way, we can ultimately become free from the suffering that these unconscious, habitual ways of engaging with the world can bring. In this episode, Ven Tenzin explores the Eight Worldly Concerns, a set of four dyads that correspond to many of the deeply held hopes and fears that drive the actions of all beings. As we engage with the spiritual path, or even the mundane decisions of the day-to-day, a clear understanding of these forms of attachment and aversion can serve as a way to become mindful of our motivations and bring clarity and skillfulness to our actions. In this way, we can ultimately become free from the suffering that these unconscious, habitual ways of engaging with the world can bring. buddhism, eight worldly concerns, meditation false full 19 7f6c859f-3f72-464e-b9ef-5f68ce6d65e1 The Path to Genuine Happiness Mon, 7 Feb 2022 19:21:08 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Ven Tenzin Chogkyi) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/the-path-to-genuine-happiness-_b4pONBV The Path to Genuine Happiness Ven Tenzin Chogkyi 00:27:16 Capitalist consumer culture puts a huge emphasis on finding happiness in the external world. But, this hedonic happiness is shown, both in our experience and in the scientific experiments, to be fleeting. In this episode, Ven Tenzin speaks to a second, more durable type of happiness that is not nearly as predicated on external factors -- Eudaimonic happiness, which is derived from what we bring to the world. Capitalist consumer culture puts a huge emphasis on finding happiness in the external world. But, this hedonic happiness is shown, both in our experience and in the scientific experiments, to be fleeting. In this episode, Ven Tenzin speaks to a second, more durable type of happiness that is not nearly as predicated on external factors -- Eudaimonic happiness, which is derived from what we bring to the world. false full 18 43ca5e2e-6cd0-48d6-ae51-9dda07fea8ef Cultivating Courage Mon, 20 Dec 2021 08:00:00 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Ven Tenzin Chogkyi) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/cultivating-courage-YmQR0aRh Cultivating Courage Ven Tenzin Chogkyi 00:40:33 In popular culture, courage is often portrayed as loud and showy, and patience as passivity and inaction. Yet, in Buddhist philosophy, courage is a hallmark of patience, of facing life’s challenges with resilience and wise action. In this episode, Ven Tenzin speaks about the intrinsic link between patience and courage, and how we can build the courage to go outside of our own comfort zones and engage in meaningful action without losing our peace of mind. In popular culture, courage is often portrayed as loud and showy, and patience as passivity and inaction. Yet, in Buddhist philosophy, courage is a hallmark of patience, of facing life’s challenges with resilience and wise action. In this episode, Ven Tenzin speaks about the intrinsic link between patience and courage, and how we can build the courage to go outside of our own comfort zones and engage in meaningful action without losing our peace of mind. buddhism, patience, meditation, mindfulness, courage false full 17 0826576a-5934-433d-95c7-021a6c5ebdba The Perfection of Patience Mon, 29 Nov 2021 14:17:54 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Ven Tenzin Chogkyi) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/the-perfection-of-patience-IhaojWam The Perfection of Patience Ven Tenzin Chogkyi 00:41:30 Patience, or forbearance, is taught as one of the six perfections, the six main practices of a bodhisattva (a being who is dedicated to attaining full enlightenment for the sake of all living beings). In the well-known text, The Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life, the 8th Century Indian master Shantideva devotes the longest chapter to the practice of patience because of its importance. But what does this patience involve? Why is it so emphasized on the spiritual path? Join us for an exploration of the perfection of patience, which is needed so desperately now in our increasingly divisive age. Patience, or forbearance, is taught as one of the six perfections, the six main practices of a bodhisattva (a being who is dedicated to attaining full enlightenment for the sake of all living beings). In the well-known text, The Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life, the 8th Century Indian master Shantideva devotes the longest chapter to the practice of patience because of its importance. But what does this patience involve? Why is it so emphasized on the spiritual path? Join us for an exploration of the perfection of patience, which is needed so desperately now in our increasingly divisive age. buddhism, bodhisattva, patience, six perfections true full 16 dab9a132-df06-439b-bc9b-7f69ce7c149d Living with Awareness:: The Four Foundations of Mindfulness Mon, 1 Nov 2021 15:48:56 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Ven Tenzin Chogkyi) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/living-with-awareness-wPo2bB3_ Living with Awareness:: The Four Foundations of Mindfulness Ven Tenzin Chogkyi 00:44:41 Mindfulness practice has become increasingly popular in recent years, and is being taught not only to Buddhist practitioners in meditation retreats but in every context, from maximum-security prisons to Silicon Valley boardrooms. But what did the Buddha teach about mindfulness, and why is this practice such a fundamental aspect of the path leading to awareness and awakening? The Four Foundations of Mindfulness, mindfulness of the body, the feelings, mind, and phenomena, was taught by the Buddha as a way to gain insight into the nature of reality. Join us for an exploration of this powerful foundational practice, and taste these insights for yourself! Mindfulness practice has become increasingly popular in recent years, and is being taught not only to Buddhist practitioners in meditation retreats but in every context, from maximum-security prisons to Silicon Valley boardrooms. But what did the Buddha teach about mindfulness, and why is this practice such a fundamental aspect of the path leading to awareness and awakening? The Four Foundations of Mindfulness, mindfulness of the body, the feelings, mind, and phenomena, was taught by the Buddha as a way to gain insight into the nature of reality. Join us for an exploration of this powerful foundational practice, and taste these insights for yourself! buddhism, meditation, compassion cultivation, mindfulness false full 15 22549329-a4c4-4ae4-99f9-3ecfcfc2a90d The Art of Forgiveness Thu, 21 Oct 2021 12:57:21 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Ven Tenzin Chogkyi) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/the-art-of-forgiveness-uGV2zOjm The Art of Forgiveness Ven Tenzin Chogkyi 00:40:24 Many of us are drawn to the practices of compassion and loving-kindness, but we still struggle with forgiveness of those who have hurt us. What’s the difference between forgiveness and compassion? Why is forgiving so difficult? Does forgiving mean forgetting? Condoning the harmful action? Join us in this discussion of what forgiveness is, what it isn’t, and how to begin the process of forgiveness. Many of us are drawn to the practices of compassion and loving-kindness, but we still struggle with forgiveness of those who have hurt us. What’s the difference between forgiveness and compassion? Why is forgiving so difficult? Does forgiving mean forgetting? Condoning the harmful action? Join us in this discussion of what forgiveness is, what it isn’t, and how to begin the process of forgiveness. buddhism, neurodharma, forgiveness, compassion, mindfulness false full 14 6daaf5ba-ba68-4fde-bb58-66eb4d07ce91 The Awe-Altruism Link Fri, 1 Oct 2021 12:29:23 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Ven Tenzin Chogkyi) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/the-awe-altruism-link-OLCx3Wbe The Awe-Altruism Link Ven Tenzin Chogkyi 00:41:36 Awe is that sense of wonder felt in the presence of something vast that transcends one’s understanding of the world. People commonly experience it in nature but also in response to religion, art and music. But recent research shows a surprising fringe benefit to moments of awe. These studies show that inducing a sense of awe in people can promote altruistic, helpful and positive social behavior. Paul Piff, a psychologist who has designed some of these studies, says, “Our investigation indicates that awe, although often fleeting and hard to describe, serves a vital social function. By diminishing the emphasis on the individual self, awe may encourage people to forgo strict self-interest to improve the welfare of others.” The researchers said they believe that awe induces a feeling of being diminished in the presence of something greater than oneself. It is this reduced sense of self that sways focus away from an individual’s need and toward the greater good. In this episode, Ven. Tenzin talks about the link between awe and altruism, and explores strategies we can use to enhance our experiences of awe, not only leading to these moments of wonder and transcendence, but motivating altruistic actions and behaviors that benefit others. Awe is that sense of wonder felt in the presence of something vast that transcends one’s understanding of the world. People commonly experience it in nature but also in response to religion, art and music. But recent research shows a surprising fringe benefit to moments of awe. These studies show that inducing a sense of awe in people can promote altruistic, helpful and positive social behavior. Paul Piff, a psychologist who has designed some of these studies, says, “Our investigation indicates that awe, although often fleeting and hard to describe, serves a vital social function. By diminishing the emphasis on the individual self, awe may encourage people to forgo strict self-interest to improve the welfare of others.” The researchers said they believe that awe induces a feeling of being diminished in the presence of something greater than oneself. It is this reduced sense of self that sways focus away from an individual’s need and toward the greater good. In this episode, Ven. Tenzin talks about the link between awe and altruism, and explores strategies we can use to enhance our experiences of awe, not only leading to these moments of wonder and transcendence, but motivating altruistic actions and behaviors that benefit others. buddhism, meditation, awe, mindfulness, altruism false full 13 4adbb0b1-05a8-4741-90f8-19f585aab982 In Search of Your Self Mon, 23 Aug 2021 11:22:09 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Ven Tenzin Chogkyi) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/in-search-of-your-self-uOCpFU7g In Search of Your Self Ven Tenzin Chogkyi 00:43:13 The Buddha famously taught the doctrine of selflessness. But what does this mean? Doesn’t modern psychology urge us to have a healthy sense of self? What part of “me” am I trying to give up? And who am I, anyway? Everyone has a natural tendency to focus on “me” – my body, my feelings, and my thoughts. This focus has played a critical role in keeping each of us safe, alive and fed… and in developing our ego construct – the story we tell ourselves about who we are. But there comes a time when this prioritization of “me” and limited view of “who I think I am” actually gets in the way of our personal and spiritual growth. Join Ven. Tenzin Chogkyi as she shares empowering, practical steps to identify and let go of the limited ego so we can make space for something much more expansive, loving and profound. The Buddha famously taught the doctrine of selflessness. But what does this mean? Doesn’t modern psychology urge us to have a healthy sense of self? What part of “me” am I trying to give up? And who am I, anyway? Everyone has a natural tendency to focus on “me” – my body, my feelings, and my thoughts. This focus has played a critical role in keeping each of us safe, alive and fed… and in developing our ego construct – the story we tell ourselves about who we are. But there comes a time when this prioritization of “me” and limited view of “who I think I am” actually gets in the way of our personal and spiritual growth. Join Ven. Tenzin Chogkyi as she shares empowering, practical steps to identify and let go of the limited ego so we can make space for something much more expansive, loving and profound. ego, buddhism, meditation, selflessness, emptiness, mindfulness false full 12 594d4d5c-f617-4ec0-b5f4-9ae5502ee4eb The Six Varieties of Love Resource: 

 

https://www.yesmagazine.org/health-happiness/2013/12/28/the-ancient-greeks-6-words-for-love-and-why-knowing-them-can-change-your-life

]]> Mon, 26 Jul 2021 16:51:08 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Venerable Tenzin Chogkyi) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/the-six-varieties-of-love-ySrlIfJy Resource: 

 

https://www.yesmagazine.org/health-happiness/2013/12/28/the-ancient-greeks-6-words-for-love-and-why-knowing-them-can-change-your-life

]]> The Six Varieties of Love Venerable Tenzin Chogkyi 00:35:33 Social connection is one of the most fundamental sources of happiness for us, but psychologists report that we are in the middle of an epidemic of loneliness, with 36% of Americans in a recent survey reporting “serious loneliness.” And the statistics might be quite similar in many other countries. Many people spend countless hours looking for their “soul mate,” the perfect someone with whom to share their life. But could it be we are overlooking all the other ways that we can find love and connection in our lives? Cultural philosopher Roman Krznaric thinks that we can learn a lot from the ancient Greeks, who had six distinct words for love. Through exploring these different varieties of love, we might be able to discover that our lives are richer than we imagined and perhaps find new ways to experience and express love in our lives. Social connection is one of the most fundamental sources of happiness for us, but psychologists report that we are in the middle of an epidemic of loneliness, with 36% of Americans in a recent survey reporting “serious loneliness.” And the statistics might be quite similar in many other countries. Many people spend countless hours looking for their “soul mate,” the perfect someone with whom to share their life. But could it be we are overlooking all the other ways that we can find love and connection in our lives? Cultural philosopher Roman Krznaric thinks that we can learn a lot from the ancient Greeks, who had six distinct words for love. Through exploring these different varieties of love, we might be able to discover that our lives are richer than we imagined and perhaps find new ways to experience and express love in our lives. buddhism, love, meditation, roman krznaric false full 11 f16f6f1e-7c14-4754-8108-4e86f12741f7 The Magic of Interconnection (and How it Makes Us Happier) Venerable Tenzin mentions some books during this episode:

  • The Overstory by Richard Powers
  • Finding the Mother Tree by Suzanne Simard
  • Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer
  • Born to Be Good by Dacher Keltner
]]> Mon, 12 Jul 2021 21:10:37 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Ven Tenzin Chogkyi) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/the-magic-of-interconnection-and-how-it-makes-us-happier-_JzSZCJ8 Venerable Tenzin mentions some books during this episode:

  • The Overstory by Richard Powers
  • Finding the Mother Tree by Suzanne Simard
  • Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer
  • Born to Be Good by Dacher Keltner
]]> The Magic of Interconnection (and How it Makes Us Happier) Ven Tenzin Chogkyi 00:39:41 In almost every discipline from biology to economics to sociology, we are taught that the world is set up as a kind of competition, where the strongest and most capable win the most resources in a zero-sum game. But recent research in all these fields shows that this just isn’t true, but rather a more universal principle is survival of the most cooperative. In this episode, we are going to look at examples of this alternative worldview in relation to the Buddhist principle of interdependence, and see how an awareness of our deep connection and interrelationship with others and the natural world can make us happier. In almost every discipline from biology to economics to sociology, we are taught that the world is set up as a kind of competition, where the strongest and most capable win the most resources in a zero-sum game. But recent research in all these fields shows that this just isn’t true, but rather a more universal principle is survival of the most cooperative. In this episode, we are going to look at examples of this alternative worldview in relation to the Buddhist principle of interdependence, and see how an awareness of our deep connection and interrelationship with others and the natural world can make us happier. interdependence, buddhism, meditation, competition, evolutionary biology false full 10 8e3d5209-8413-4057-b8e5-dc837e16ff8e What's Shame Got to Do with It? Exploring Shame, Contempt and Disgust through a Contemplative Lens with Dr. Eve Ekman This interview was recorded in front of a live Zoom audience as part of the Healing the Body, Healing the Mind Online Conference in partnership with Jamyang Buddhist Center’s Science and Wisdom LIVE project.

]]> Mon, 28 Jun 2021 07:00:00 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Dr Eve Ekman, Ven Tenzin Chogkyi) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/whats-shame-got-to-do-with-it-04TO_gCm This interview was recorded in front of a live Zoom audience as part of the Healing the Body, Healing the Mind Online Conference in partnership with Jamyang Buddhist Center’s Science and Wisdom LIVE project.

]]> What's Shame Got to Do with It? Exploring Shame, Contempt and Disgust through a Contemplative Lens with Dr. Eve Ekman Dr Eve Ekman, Ven Tenzin Chogkyi 00:36:56 Most of us would do almost anything to avoid feeling shame, an emotion that creates a feeling that we are fundamentally flawed. Transforming this emotion must be done through careful examination from all sides from its evolutionary purpose to its contemporary manifestations in “cancel culture.” Additionally, we can examine our other “self conscious” emotions of contempt, disgust, and guilt — these emotions which perpetuate the judgement and “othering” that further polarizes us from others and degrades our ability to engage with our full hearts of empathy. We will unpack the scientific understanding of shame, contempt, guilt, and disgust and consider their impact on our lived daily experiences. We will consider: Are these emotions to be avoided at all costs? Is there any purpose to these emotions, do these emotions have any kind of a message for us? How can we learn to manage these emotions mindfully and with compassion? Most of us would do almost anything to avoid feeling shame, an emotion that creates a feeling that we are fundamentally flawed. Transforming this emotion must be done through careful examination from all sides from its evolutionary purpose to its contemporary manifestations in “cancel culture.” Additionally, we can examine our other “self conscious” emotions of contempt, disgust, and guilt — these emotions which perpetuate the judgement and “othering” that further polarizes us from others and degrades our ability to engage with our full hearts of empathy. We will unpack the scientific understanding of shame, contempt, guilt, and disgust and consider their impact on our lived daily experiences. We will consider: Are these emotions to be avoided at all costs? Is there any purpose to these emotions, do these emotions have any kind of a message for us? How can we learn to manage these emotions mindfully and with compassion? ekman, jamyang, buddhism, emotion, shame, science of emotions, mindfulness false full 9 8e7e104c-3110-4e5c-b9a3-b1c9a05839d4 Practicing Community Care Ven Tenzin mentioned a number of links during this episode, and they're here for your convenience.

  • https://www.flare.com/identity/self-care-new-zealand-muslim-attack/
  • https://www.healthline.com/health/when-self-care-becomes-community-care#Were-responsible-for-each-other
  • https://www.ihollaback.org/bystanderintervention/
]]> Wed, 16 Jun 2021 20:47:50 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Ven Tenzin Chogkyi) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/community-care-cCD7qKDc Ven Tenzin mentioned a number of links during this episode, and they're here for your convenience.

  • https://www.flare.com/identity/self-care-new-zealand-muslim-attack/
  • https://www.healthline.com/health/when-self-care-becomes-community-care#Were-responsible-for-each-other
  • https://www.ihollaback.org/bystanderintervention/
]]> Practicing Community Care Ven Tenzin Chogkyi 00:35:41 Everywhere we turn these days, we are encouraged to practice self-care. But is this something we only do in isolation, with a day at the spa or a night curled up with a good book, or is there a role for community care? Self-care is about the individual caring for their own basic physical needs, whereas community care is focused on the collective: taking care of people together, for everything from basic physical needs to psychological and even spiritual ones. Community care is a recognition of the undeniable cooperative and social nature of human beings and involves a commitment to reduce harm simply through being together. In these challenging times, we need community care more than ever -- in this episode, learn techniques for how to engage in this important personal and spiritual practice. Everywhere we turn these days, we are encouraged to practice self-care. But is this something we only do in isolation, with a day at the spa or a night curled up with a good book, or is there a role for community care? Self-care is about the individual caring for their own basic physical needs, whereas community care is focused on the collective: taking care of people together, for everything from basic physical needs to psychological and even spiritual ones. Community care is a recognition of the undeniable cooperative and social nature of human beings and involves a commitment to reduce harm simply through being together. In these challenging times, we need community care more than ever -- in this episode, learn techniques for how to engage in this important personal and spiritual practice. better together, from me to we, community, self care false full 8 688a1246-548b-4179-9697-2c174b35b39e Testing the Waters of Love with Greg Morris Ven. Tenzin and Greg are co-teaching the Compassion Cultivation Training beginning June 30, click here for more information.

]]> Thu, 3 Jun 2021 15:17:28 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Greg Morris, Ven Tenzin Chogkyi) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/testing-the-waters-with-greg-morris-bGEIM_62 Ven. Tenzin and Greg are co-teaching the Compassion Cultivation Training beginning June 30, click here for more information.

]]> Testing the Waters of Love with Greg Morris Greg Morris, Ven Tenzin Chogkyi 00:50:28 In this episode, Ven. Tenzin interviews Greg Morris, diversity consultant, filmmaker, compassion educator, and meditator. In this wide-ranging discussion, Greg discusses how the guiding principles of love and compassion has manifested throughout their life, in settings as diverse as the streets of the nation’s capital, the Stanford Business School and a remote village in Papua New Guinea. In this episode, Ven. Tenzin interviews Greg Morris, diversity consultant, filmmaker, compassion educator, and meditator. In this wide-ranging discussion, Greg discusses how the guiding principles of love and compassion has manifested throughout their life, in settings as diverse as the streets of the nation’s capital, the Stanford Business School and a remote village in Papua New Guinea. buddhism, diversity, meditation, greg morris, tenzin chogkyi false full 7 5faa19b0-74f6-4f24-a56c-13d0c6591aae Bringing Back the Wonder Ven Tenzin mentioned some web links during this episode, which are listed below.

https://onbeing.org/programs/ross-gay-tending-joy-and-practicing-delight/ https://www.npr.org/2021/02/18/969032187/the-gratitude-chain-a-j-jacobs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9aT0A28IW7E

]]> Fri, 23 Apr 2021 16:00:00 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Ven Tenzin Chogkyi) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/bringing-back-the-wonder-g9XTPWPy Ven Tenzin mentioned some web links during this episode, which are listed below.

https://onbeing.org/programs/ross-gay-tending-joy-and-practicing-delight/ https://www.npr.org/2021/02/18/969032187/the-gratitude-chain-a-j-jacobs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9aT0A28IW7E

]]> Bringing Back the Wonder Ven Tenzin Chogkyi 00:36:47 Have you ever wondered why time seems to go so much faster as you get older? It’s a well-known and seemingly universal experience. Psychologists hypothesize that this is due to the fact we use the number of new memories we form to gauge how much time has passed. First memories are dense. When things become routine, we aren’t really paying attention, we aren’t recording the details of that specific experience. In this episode, we’ll talk about how to stop and notice what is around us, bringing back the wonder of fresh appreciation of every moment, thereby increasing our joy and gratitude. Have you ever wondered why time seems to go so much faster as you get older? It’s a well-known and seemingly universal experience. Psychologists hypothesize that this is due to the fact we use the number of new memories we form to gauge how much time has passed. First memories are dense. When things become routine, we aren’t really paying attention, we aren’t recording the details of that specific experience. In this episode, we’ll talk about how to stop and notice what is around us, bringing back the wonder of fresh appreciation of every moment, thereby increasing our joy and gratitude. chogkyi, buddhism, gratitude practice, meditation, tenzin false full 6 b9e3e0ae-4171-42ce-a0b7-15ad46715e4d Unpacking Anger with Dr. Eve Ekman Dr Ekman mentions an upcoming summit in the podcast.  If of interest, the link is below.

Explore the Science, Wisdom, and Power of Emotions
with His Holiness the Dalai Lama
and over 30 Leading Scientists + World Renowned Teachers

Join this Special Free Global Event
May 2-5, 2021

https://www.scienceandwisdomofemotions.com/

]]> Thu, 15 Apr 2021 01:17:46 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Ven Tenzin Chogkyi, Dr Eve Ekman) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/unpacking-anger-with-dr-eve-ekman-SZcM4Nuq Dr Ekman mentions an upcoming summit in the podcast.  If of interest, the link is below.

Explore the Science, Wisdom, and Power of Emotions
with His Holiness the Dalai Lama
and over 30 Leading Scientists + World Renowned Teachers

Join this Special Free Global Event
May 2-5, 2021

https://www.scienceandwisdomofemotions.com/

]]> Unpacking Anger with Dr. Eve Ekman Ven Tenzin Chogkyi, Dr Eve Ekman 00:40:38 In this episode, Ven. Tenzin interviews Dr. Eve Ekman, emotions researcher and director of the Cultivating Emotional Balance program, about the often problematic emotion of anger. Is anger always a negative emotion? What is its function? Is there such a thing as constructive anger? And what about the kind of anger that fuels social justice activism? Join us to explore these questions on this episode. In this episode, Ven. Tenzin interviews Dr. Eve Ekman, emotions researcher and director of the Cultivating Emotional Balance program, about the often problematic emotion of anger. Is anger always a negative emotion? What is its function? Is there such a thing as constructive anger? And what about the kind of anger that fuels social justice activism? Join us to explore these questions on this episode. false full 5 519e16d6-675d-4e38-8916-7899605104ab Self-Compassion Mon, 22 Mar 2021 07:00:00 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Ven Tenzin Chogkyi) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/self-compassion-6RSosLex Self-Compassion Ven Tenzin Chogkyi 00:38:19 This episode explores self-compassion — what it is, what it's not and how it can make you happier. Put simply, self-compassion is simply treating yourself with the same kindness, concern, and support you'd show a good friend. So, why is it so difficult? What are some of the obstacles to self-compassion? Is there a way we can train ourselves in self-compassion? In this session, Ven. Tenzin discusses why it’s so difficult to give ourselves the same kindness and compassion that we would a friend, and will also introduce us to a short self-compassion practice that we can take into our daily lives to increase our happiness and well-being. This episode explores self-compassion — what it is, what it's not and how it can make you happier. Put simply, self-compassion is simply treating yourself with the same kindness, concern, and support you'd show a good friend. So, why is it so difficult? What are some of the obstacles to self-compassion? Is there a way we can train ourselves in self-compassion? In this session, Ven. Tenzin discusses why it’s so difficult to give ourselves the same kindness and compassion that we would a friend, and will also introduce us to a short self-compassion practice that we can take into our daily lives to increase our happiness and well-being. false full 4 0f631c1d-ccb2-4af5-be5e-0b4299271e41 Recognizing our Common Humanity Wed, 3 Mar 2021 15:20:26 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Ven Tenzin Chogkyi) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/recognizing-our-common-humanity-ndTNsbXa Recognizing our Common Humanity Ven Tenzin Chogkyi 00:23:22 Many of us feel that our social and political worlds are more divided than ever before, and are aware of the suffering this polarization causes. One of the key steps in contemplative compassion training is a recognition of our common humanity, that beneath all the superficial differences of religion, culture, race, ethnicity, political beliefs, etc., we all share the same basic human feelings and needs. In this episode, Ven. Tenzin introduces this topic and leads us through a brief guided practice. Many of us feel that our social and political worlds are more divided than ever before, and are aware of the suffering this polarization causes. One of the key steps in contemplative compassion training is a recognition of our common humanity, that beneath all the superficial differences of religion, culture, race, ethnicity, political beliefs, etc., we all share the same basic human feelings and needs. In this episode, Ven. Tenzin introduces this topic and leads us through a brief guided practice. meditation, common humanity, compassion, mindfulness false full 3 f73f56df-532c-4b6e-a6de-ad8f051fd712 Mindfully Managing Anger Characteristics of Anger:

  • Theme: Being thwarted in pursuit of goal that matters to you
  • Effects: Anger controls, punishes and retaliates
  • Dangerous effect: Anger calls forth more anger. It is difficult not to respond to anger with anger, especially when it appears unjustified
  • Why do people want to change anger?
  • It is the dangerous emotion that can quickly hurt others, psychologically, and physically
  • Many taught not to express anger -> guilt, shame
  • For some own anger can get out of control -> fear

Common Anger Triggers

  • Interference and lack of efficacy
  • Disrespect
  • Someone trying to hurt us
  • Another person’s anger
  • Injustice: both societal and personal (not being given credit for work)
  • Disappointment in how a person has acted
  • Betrayal, abandonment, rejection
  • Being falsely accused
  • Breaking a cultural rule

Anger Antidotes

  • Put yourself in the other person’s shoes
  • Don’t take it personally!
  • Is the other person mirroring your own unwanted qualities?
  • Do you have a need that is not being met?
  • Check your expectation!
  • Check for an underlying emotion (fear, hurt, vulnerability)
  • Is there an important message?
  • Keep a healthy distance from triggering objects!
  • Cultivating loving-kindness and compassion
]]> Fri, 19 Feb 2021 16:00:00 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Tenzin Chogkyi) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/mindfully-managing-anger-wO3PiCB0 Characteristics of Anger:

  • Theme: Being thwarted in pursuit of goal that matters to you
  • Effects: Anger controls, punishes and retaliates
  • Dangerous effect: Anger calls forth more anger. It is difficult not to respond to anger with anger, especially when it appears unjustified
  • Why do people want to change anger?
  • It is the dangerous emotion that can quickly hurt others, psychologically, and physically
  • Many taught not to express anger -> guilt, shame
  • For some own anger can get out of control -> fear

Common Anger Triggers

  • Interference and lack of efficacy
  • Disrespect
  • Someone trying to hurt us
  • Another person’s anger
  • Injustice: both societal and personal (not being given credit for work)
  • Disappointment in how a person has acted
  • Betrayal, abandonment, rejection
  • Being falsely accused
  • Breaking a cultural rule

Anger Antidotes

  • Put yourself in the other person’s shoes
  • Don’t take it personally!
  • Is the other person mirroring your own unwanted qualities?
  • Do you have a need that is not being met?
  • Check your expectation!
  • Check for an underlying emotion (fear, hurt, vulnerability)
  • Is there an important message?
  • Keep a healthy distance from triggering objects!
  • Cultivating loving-kindness and compassion
]]> Mindfully Managing Anger Tenzin Chogkyi 00:32:00 This episode, recorded live during a teaching, dives deep into one of the most powerful emotions that can often manifest destructively -- anger. Ven. Tenzin uncovers the triggers of anger - and its antidotes - followed by a reflection that invites us to look at a past episode of anger, understand its roots and see clearly how often anger can be caused by (and cause) a misapprehension of reality. This episode, recorded live during a teaching, dives deep into one of the most powerful emotions that can often manifest destructively -- anger. Ven. Tenzin uncovers the triggers of anger - and its antidotes - followed by a reflection that invites us to look at a past episode of anger, understand its roots and see clearly how often anger can be caused by (and cause) a misapprehension of reality. false full 2 b50aafe6-7af0-420d-91b4-7a33849d18ce Friendship Today's episode includes a couple of lists of qualities, which are jotted down here for your ease of reference.

Qualities of a true friend, according to the Buddha.

  • Is a help and support
  • Is the same in happiness and sorrow
  • Advises his friend for his welfare
  • Is sympathetic

Ven Tenzin also mentions Jean Baker Miller's list of five phenomena of growth-enhancing relationships.

  • Each person feels a great sense of zest (vitality).
  • Each person feels more able to act, and does act.
  • Each person has a more accurate picture of her/himself and the other person(s).
  • Each person feels a greater sense of self-worth.
  • Each person feels more connected to the other person(s) and greater motivation for connections with other people.

 

]]> Sun, 7 Feb 2021 22:22:24 +0000 unlocking@silentroom.com (Venerable Tenzin Chogkyi) https://unlockingtruehappiness.simplecast.com/episodes/friendship-95L3ItbQ Today's episode includes a couple of lists of qualities, which are jotted down here for your ease of reference.

Qualities of a true friend, according to the Buddha.

  • Is a help and support
  • Is the same in happiness and sorrow
  • Advises his friend for his welfare
  • Is sympathetic

Ven Tenzin also mentions Jean Baker Miller's list of five phenomena of growth-enhancing relationships.

  • Each person feels a great sense of zest (vitality).
  • Each person feels more able to act, and does act.
  • Each person has a more accurate picture of her/himself and the other person(s).
  • Each person feels a greater sense of self-worth.
  • Each person feels more connected to the other person(s) and greater motivation for connections with other people.

 

]]> Friendship Venerable Tenzin Chogkyi 00:30:50 While we often think of the Buddha's teachings as focusing only on meditation and enlightenment, he actually gave a lot of advice on the topic of relationships -- and the qualities of a good, supportive friendship. In today's episode, we explore the importance of social connection, and how the Buddha's advice can help us cultivate beneficial friendships; and also how to show up as a more supportive friend. We conclude with a short reflection and motivation setting on the friendships in our own lives. While we often think of the Buddha's teachings as focusing only on meditation and enlightenment, he actually gave a lot of advice on the topic of relationships -- and the qualities of a good, supportive friendship. In today's episode, we explore the importance of social connection, and how the Buddha's advice can help us cultivate beneficial friendships; and also how to show up as a more supportive friend. We conclude with a short reflection and motivation setting on the friendships in our own lives. buddhism, unlocking true happiness, friendship, tenzin chogkyi false full 1