In this episode taken from a Geeks of the Round Table Google Hangout, meditation teacher Kenneth Folk joins Buddhist Geeks Vincent Horn, Emily Horn, and Kelly Sosan Bearer to discuss a recent Wired article, Enlightenment Engineers, that profiles Kenneth and the mindfulness culture in Silicon Valley.

Emily opens the conversation by asking, “Does meditation really make you more productive and wealthy? And is it a way to get ahead?” The group explores these questions and discusses how variables in an individual’s values, form of practice, and other perceptual filters affect the answers.

This is part one of a two part series. Listen to part two: The Trojan Horse of Meditation.

Episode Links:

Kenneth Folk ( http://kennethfolkdharma.com )

Enlightenment Engineers ( http://www.wired.com/business/2013/06/meditation-mindfulness-silicon-valley )

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David Passiak is a former religion scholar turned technology entrepreneur who has spent nearly 20 years working at the intersection of disruptive innovation and traditional conceptions of community and wisdom. David is author of Red Bull to Buddha: Innovation and the Search for Wisdom and also the forthcoming The Disruption Revolution: Innovation, Entrepreneurship, and the New Rules of Leadership.

In this conversation David and host Vincent Horn discuss the book Red Bull to Buddha and the cycles of technological innovation that have led to major social change throughout history. In talking about the inspiration for the book, David describes visiting a temple in Thailand where bottles of the sports energy drink Red Bull were being presented as devotional offerings. He explains how examining his discovery of Red Bull in the temple led him to explore how the meaning of a brand or object is dependent on cultural context, and how culture is affected by technological advance. This leads Vincent and David to discuss how a Buddhist practice can help one to navigate a world that’s in a constant state of cultural and technological disruption.

Episode Links:

Red Bull to Buddha: Innovation and the Search for Wisdom ( http://www.amazon.com/kindle-store/dp/B00E4W4C1S )

Social Meditate ( http://www.socialmeditate.com )

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Teachers Sofia Diaz and Trudy Goodman continue this episode of Geeks of the Round Table with host Kelly Sosan Bearer by exploring the Feminine aspect of spiritual practice from a female teacher’s point of view. The women begin by discussing qualitative differences in teaching approaches between female and male teachers, and Trudy talks about the more intimate approach she uses when teaching. Using Mother Teresa as an example of a female spiritual leader who supported many but found difficulty in finding support herself, the women discuss how the sometimes difficult role of female spiritual leader has grown and evolved. Moving on to how neglecting topics of sexuality, sexual attraction, and gender differences in spiritual practice can cause suffering for both men and women, they conclude the conversation with advice to younger generations: trust your feelings, trust your intuition, and lovingly explore the differences between yourself and others.

This is part two of a two part series. Listen to part one Perfect Insight is Perfect Love.

Episode Links:

Sofia Diaz ( www.sofiayoga.com )

Trudy Goodman ( www.insightla.org/about/teachers.php )

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In this episode taken from a Geeks of the Round Table Google Hangout, Sofia Diaz and Trudy Goodman join host Kelly Sosan Bearer to discuss Feminine Practice and its connections and distinctions to the masculine principle in spiritual practice. Kelly begins by asking: what is feminine practice and what is its distinction from other practices? Sofia describes feminine practice as being the devotional, feeling part of practice as compared to the masculine insight and contemplative part, though both dimensions are deeply intertwined. Both Sofia and Trudy then relate their individual longing and search for the feminine dimension of practice, how they each came to a realization of the feminine principle in their own practice, and how each approaches these energetics when teaching.

This is part one of a two part series. Listen to part two: Be the Lover

Episode Links:

Sofia Diaz ( http://www.sofiayoga.com )

Trudy Goodman ( https://www.insightla.org/about/teachers.php )

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Ken Mcleod is one of the more innovative teachers of Buddhism today, known for his ability to explain difficult and subtle teachings. In the conclusion of this conversation on the “Truth”, Ken and host Vincent Horn compare and contrast various approaches to spiritual development and some hidden pitfalls one might encounter.

Vincent begins by asking a fundamental question of the search for the “Truth”: by whose authority? The two then discuss some helpful qualifiers when searching for a spiritual authority, some pitfalls to avoid when trusting that authority, and the various ways study might look under various authorities and techniques. Ken describes how the spiritual path will generally progress and the importance of periodically examining one’s motivations for study. They conclude the conversation by discussing the importance of fundamentals to whatever authority or path of practice one chooses.

This is part two of a two part series. Listen to part one: Truth is a Red Herring.

Episode Links:

Unfettered Mind ( http://www.unfetteredmind.org )

PINA ( http://www.pina-film.de/en/ )

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Ken Mcleod is one of the more innovative teachers of Buddhism today, known for his ability to explain difficult and subtle teachings. In this conversation with host Vincent Horn, Ken takes on one of the most difficult topics to pin down: the “Truth”.

They begin the conversation by examining the supposition that the path to enlightenment is ultimately to find the “Truth”. Vincent talks about how his early efforts in practice were rooted in the need to find the “Truth”, and how his motivations and understanding have changed. Ken relates his own recent advances on the topic. The two then examine the role and representation of the “Truth” in context of spiritual practice, psychological well being, and philosophical inquiry. They then explore the parallels of “Truth” and “Enlightenment” and how each idea is shaped and defined by the culture and by the individual.

This is part one of a two part series. Listen to part two: Questioning Frameworks of Practice.

Episode Links:

Unfettered Mind ( http://www.unfetteredmind.org )

Straw Dogs ( http://amzn.to/1MRFcSd )

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Tony Stubblebine is interested in meditation, app development, and behavioral design. He’s brought all three interests together in his latest project, a habit building app called Lift.

In this conversation over Google Hangouts, Tony and host Vincent Horn discuss the merits and potential shadow side to behavioural design. Tony describes how he became interested in the science of behavioural design and how that led him to create Lift as a way to bring a social aspect to building positive habits. They talk about the three components to consider when building a habit, how the QS Movement relates to behavioural design, and how to use systems like Lift to build strong positive habits like daily meditation.

Episode Links:

LIFT ( https://lift.do )

Lift’s How to Meditate page with free guided meditations ( https://lift.do/meditation )

BJ Fogg ( http://www.bjfogg.com )

Quantified Self ( http://quantifiedself.com )

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In this interview, host Vincent Horn speaks with Dr. Ronald Purser–professor of management at SFSU and an ordained Zen Buddhist teacher in the Korean Taego order. They explore Ronald’s research on organizational mindfulness, mindfulness in corporate settings, and how Buddhist philosophy can inform organizational theory and practice, with a particular emphasis on exploring the limitations and shadow-sides of the mindfulness movement as it moves into the business context.

Episode Links:

College of Business at San Francisco State University ( http://cob.sfsu.edu/cob/directory/faculty/ronald-purser )

Center for Creative Inquiry ( http://www.creativeinquiry.org/develop/index.php )

Korean Buddhist Taego Order ( http://www.taegozen.net )

Beyond McMindfulness ( http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ron-purser/beyond-mcmindfulness_b_3519289.html )

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David M. Levy is a professor of technology in the Information School (or iSchool) at the University of Washington. Since 2006 he has offered a course called “Information and Contemplation”, a course on mindfulness in the Digital Age.

In this interview with host Vincent Horn, David talks about his early rejection of zen meditation practice and how he came back to it later through a study of calligraphy. They talk about a National Science Foundation funded study David created to observe the effects of meditation on multitasking, and the university course he subsequently developed at the iSchool, “Information and Contemplation.” He talks about insights his students have through the course and the surprising way email can be used as a focus for mindfulness. Finally, Vincent and David discuss the idea of taking a “digital Sabbath” and the usefulness of periodically unplugging from the online world.

Episode Links:

What Computers Still Can’t Do: A Critique of Artificial Reason ( http://amzn.to/15yQx4K )

“You’re Distracted. This Professor Can Help.” ( http://chronicle.com/article/Youre-Distracted-This/138079/ )

Xerox PARC ( http://www.parc.com )

Darlene Cohen ( http://www.darlenecohen.net )

“Information and Contemplation” ( http://dmlevy.ischool.uw.edu/information-and-contemplation/ )

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Ramez Naam is a computer scientist who spent 13 years at Microsoft, leading teams working on email, web browsing, search, and artificial intelligence. He’s the author of several books including Nexus, a science fiction thriller set in the near future when humans are linked mind-to-mind by an experimental and illegal nano-drug.

In this conversation with host Vincent Horn, Ramez describes his inspiration for the book and it’s narrative of collectivism and mind-to-mind connection through technology. The two discuss the fact, fiction, benefits, and perils of technology that can connect humanity so intimately, and what that kind of technology could mean to the process of awakening.

Episode Links:

www.RamezNaam.com

Nexus ( http://rameznaam.com/nexus/ )

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