We speak to insight meditation teacher and comedian Wes Nisker about humor, enlightenment, and the way that the scientific vision has impacted and informed the teachings of the Buddha. Quoting Wavy Gravy, Wes comments that, “If you don’t have a sense of humor, it just isn’t that funny.” Wes, who also has a passion for science, shares the Buddha’s teachings on karma and impermanence and how those teachings relate to the current state of science. Find out how much happens in a yactosecond, and what science and the Buddhist teachings in karma have in common.

This is part 1 of a three-part series. Listen to Part 2: Science as the Western Wisdom Tradition & Part 3: Crazy Wisdom Saves the Day!

Episode Links:

• The Big Bang, The Buddha, and the Baby Boom ( http://bit.ly/D9jv7 )
• Inquiring Mind ( http://www.inquiringmind.com )

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Gregory Kramer, teacher of an interpersonal meditation practice called Insight Dialogue (and author of a book with the same title) joins us to explore the question of, “What is the path of awakening, when we realize that we are essentially relational beings?” We discuss his early path as a meditator and the later work that contributed to the co-creation of the dialogic meditation practice, insight dialogue. We also delve into the interpersonal truths behind the 4 noble truths, especially as they relate to interpersonal suffering and hunger, and see how interpersonal meditation is one way to become free both personally and relationally.

This is Part 1 of a two-part series. Listen to Part 2, Insight Dialogue: Extending Meditation into Mutuality.

Episode Links:

• Insight Dialogue: An Interpersonal Path to Freedom ( http://bit.ly/U4EAi )

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Jundo Cohen, student of Gudo Wafu Nishijima Roshi, and abbot of the almost completely virtual Treeleaf Zendo joined us to discuss his virtual sangha. Jundo formed the community to meet the needs of those people who were living in highly isolated situations, or were too sick or elderly to continue to sit with a local Sangha. Using technological tools such as Skype, U-Stream, and Operator 11 Jundo has found a way to do daily sittings, ceremonies, and even retreats online. Listen in and find out more about this ground-breaking endeavor.

Episode Links:

• Treeleaf Zendo ( http://www.treeleaf.org )
• U-Stream ( http://www.ustream.tv )

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We continue our discussion with spiritual teacher and dharma punk Noah Levine, and cover several more areas of interest, including the traditional Theravada ideal of enlightenment. We also discuss what it looks like to live as a Spiritual Rebel, Revolutionary, and finally a Spiritual Radical. Finally, Noah shares some of his thoughts on ways to engage environmental and political issues from a Buddhist perspective. Far from trying to escape samsara, Noah finds himself more and more interested in taking on the ideals of the Bodhisattva. We finish the dialogue asking Noah whether he thinks the Buddha was a boxers or briefs kind of guy. Be prepared to fall out of your chair (or cushion) in laughter when you hear his reply.

This is the 2nd part of a two-part series. Listen to Part 1: Being Human and Suffering Less Along the Way.

Episode Links:

• Against the Stream: A Buddhist Manual for Spiritual Revolutionaries ( http://bit.ly/KKrC8 )
• Dharma Punx ( http://bit.ly/cmiwi4 )

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Finishing up our discussion with scholar-practitioner, and Shambhala Acharaya, Judith Simmer-Brown we explore two very important issues for Western Buddhists: lineage and gender. Judith shares her take on the importance of lineage for new teachers, explaining the role of an Acharaya, and discussing the need to connect strongly to the roots of the tradition. She also warns that if as Western Buddhists we aren’t properly educated in our traditions we can’t make intelligent adaptations, however important those adaptations might be. We also discuss the role of gender in the West, acknowledging first and foremost that Western Buddhism has a very different relationship to gender then our Asian forefathers. A large percentage of Buddhist practitioners and teachers in the West are women, and as a result there have been interesting changes afoot.

This is part 2 of a two-part series. Listen to Part 1: The Scholar-Practitioner: Joining Theory and Practice.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Noah Levine, Buddhist teacher and dharma punk, shares the intimate details of his early lifestyle of punk rock, drugs, and jail and his climb out of a harmful way of living that was facilitated in part by meditation practice. For more details about his journey check out his spiritual memoir, Dharma Punx. He also shares with us his experience of becoming a Buddhist teacher under the tutelage of Jack Kornfield. We go on to talk about Noah’s most recent writing Against the Stream, and his unique way of expression the dharma. We also discuss the difference in how 1st generation & 2nd or 3rd generation teachers might express the Dharma in the West. He claims that there is a difference in emphasis, but that they are expressing the same fundamental teachings. We finish our conversation discussing the ideas of karma and grace, and their inter-relation, as well as the true aim of the path, which for Noah is about “being human and suffering less along the way.”

This is Part 1 of a two-part series. Listen to Part 2: The Spiritual Radical.

Episode Links:

• Against the Stream: A Buddhist Manual for Spiritual Revolutionaries ( http://bit.ly/KKrC8 )
• Dharma Punx ( http://bit.ly/cmiwi4 )

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Judith Simmer-Brown, a professor of Religious Studies at Naropa University and authorized teacher in the Shambhala tradition speaks with us about the coming together of theoretical study and meditation practice in the context of academia—what professor Charles Prebish calls the “scholar-practitioner”. She shares with us the historical precedents for this movement in America, and how it is changing now. When asked about the benefits of doing both study and practice together, Judith shares much of what she sees are the benefits of using a “contemplative pedagogy” (or contemplative education approach) in the classroom. She also relates the danger of not bringing these two forms of practice together, in that one could become either a “stupid practitioner” or “arrogant scholar” without the grounding of the opposite discipline. We finish the conversation with Judith sharing some of resources she suggests for those people who want to deepen their theoretical understanding of the Buddhist tradition.

This is part 1 of a two-part series. Listen to Part 2: Becoming Whole: Lineage and Gender in American Buddhism.

Episode Links:

• Master Dogen’s Shobogenzo ( http://bit.ly/1zYRW )
• The New Panditas ( http://www.thebuddhadharma.com/issues/2006/spring/scholar-practitioners.html )
• Dakini’s Warm Breath: The Feminine Principle in Tibetan Buddhism ( http://bit.ly/Euzrb )
• The Path of Purification: Visuddhimagga ( http://bit.ly/f68Cm )
• Swallowing the River Ganges : A Practice Guide to the Path of Purification ( http://bit.ly/Mbntv )

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We continue our discussion with the Venerable Thubten Chodron, a long time Western Buddhist Nun, and founder of Sravasti Abbey in Washington State. In this dialogue she shares with us the vision behind Sravasti Abbey, discussing the benefits of living the monastic life and using community life as a means to continue to deepen practice. She also discusses the importance of monasteries in western culture, and maintains that monastics can serve as the conscience of the society, citing the recent events in Burma as an example. She also holds that monasteries are a place of hope and optimism, and that many people feel inspired and challenged by the monastic lifestyle. Before closing off the conversation she also touches on the importance of the dharma being offered freely to all people, especially with regards to gender. We hope you enjoy this conversation with one of the West’s most beloved Tibetan Nuns.

This is part 2 of a two-part series. Listen to part 1, Reformatting the Hard Disk of the Mind.

Episode Links:

• Sravasti Abbey ( http://www.sravastiabbey.org )

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In the second half of our conversation with Buddhist teacher Diana Winston we go on to discuss the various ways that Buddhism and more secular mindfulness practices are being marketed to youth. The mindfulness movement itself seems to be one of the most promising of these different methods, as does the promulgation of Buddhist teachings via the internet. We finish off our discussion exploring the promises and perils of starting a serious practice when one is in their teens, and explore how serious, young practitioners end up often missing out on some other important areas of development.

This is part 2 of a two-part series. Listen to part 1, What Happens to the Dharma when the Boomers Die Out?

Episode Links:

• Wide Awake: Buddhism for the New Generation ( http://bit.ly/RHZXx )
• UCLA Mindful Awareness Research Center ( http://www.marc.ucla.edu )

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Thubten Chodron, a long time Western Buddhist Nun, and founder of Sravasti Abbey in Washington State, took time with us to discuss her work as a teacher, including all of the work she has done with students online. She shared with us the potential down-sides of having a purely digital relationship with a teacher, as one doesn’t have the opportunity to see experience teacher as a living example. Chodron also commented on an issue she sees our society having with spiritual practice, in that we tend to want things to be easy and quick. Her, and other teachers, have observed a tendency to want a kind of “push-button enlightenment”. The truth, she says, is that there aren’t any shortcuts when it comes to transforming the mind and realizing suffering and it’s cessation. We finish off our conversation with Chodron exploring what has changed as Buddhism has come to the West. She mentions that much of the packaging has changed, but that it’s always a tricky process differentiating the packaging from the teachings of liberation. What is culture and what is the dharma? She gives her opinions on the subject, and shares some of the ways in which her community is trying to change with the times. We hope you enjoy this conversation with one of the West’s most beloved Tibetan Nuns.

This is part 1 of a two-part series. Listen to Part 2: Monasteries as the Conscience of Society.

Episode Links:

• Sravasti Abbey ( http://www.sravastiabbey.org )

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.