Buddhist Geeks

The Geeks of the Round Table™ continue their discussion on the Big Mind process and the criticisms from Zen teacher Brad Warner, in his article Big Mind™ is a Big Load™ of Horse Shit (link goes to SuicideGirls, an alt porn site). The geeks focus on these criticisms which include charging for the dharma, the nature of an authentic transmission, trademarking Dharma practice, ethical issues with marketing the dharma, and issues of confusing personal psychology with transpersonal states and stages. Hold on to your seat and be prepared to be whisked into a world of geeky and fun banter between these young (and foolhardy) practitioners.

This is Part two of a two-part series. Listen to Part 1: McZen: A Double Satori with Cheese.

Episode Links:

• Seth Godin ( http://www.sethgodin.com )
• Sex, Ecology, Spirituality ( http://bit.ly/awSyG )
• BigMind.org
• Instant Enlightenment: Fast, Deep, and Sexy ( http://bit.ly/H1vIn )
• Tracing Back the Radiance: Chinul’s Korean Way of Zen ( http://bit.ly/1aB1KR )

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This is an experimental dialogue called Geeks of the Round Table. In this session we speak with two young Buddhist practitioners in a round-table format about Brad Warner’s criticisms of the Big Mind process, in an article he wrote called, Big Mind™ is a Big Load™ of Horse Shit . We are joined by a student of Genpo Roshi’s as well as someone who has a more skeptical view of the Big Mind process. This quick-paced dialogue covers a number of interesting topics including the difference between altered states and permanent traits, issues of marketing the Dharma, the nature of skillful means, transmission and practice, the important dialectic between tradition and innovation, and the recipe for a sensational new sandwich, the double satori with cheese.

This is part 1 of a two-part series. Listen to Part 2: Geeks of the Round Table™.

Episode Links:

• Skillful Means / Upaya ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skillful_means )
• Big Mind Zen Center ( http://bigmind.org )
• Big Mind(tm) Sucks (Part a Million) ( http://hardcorezen.blogspot.com/2010/04/big-mind-sucks-part-million.html )

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Crazy Wisdom, a phrase coined by the late Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, is used to describe uncommon, unique, and even wild ways of sharing wisdom. Wes Nisker, insight meditation teacher, shares with us his connection to the crazy wisdom teachers of the past, including such spiritual teachers as Jesus, Rumi, Kabir, and Benkei as well as philosophers, scientists, and artists from the Western tradition. We discuss the importance of crazy wisdom, especially with regards to it’s ability to pave the way for new ways of thinking. Quoting Oscar Wilde, Wes explains that, “all great truths begin as blasphemy.” At the end of the talk we share an except from Wes Nisker’s comic monologue album, with a track entitled Meeting the Buddha on the Road. With his own unique brand of Crazy Wisdom, Wes shares his initial exposure to the dharma and to the difficult, albeit funny, truth of how the mind works.

This is part 3 of a three-part series. Listen to Part 1: Atto, Zepto, and Yacto: The Buddhist Marx Brothers and Part 2: Science as the Western Wisdom Tradition.

Episode Links:

• The Big Bang, The Buddha, and the Baby Boom ( http://bit.ly/D9jv7 )
• Crazy Wisdom Saves the Day Again!: Handbook for a Spiritual Revolution ( http://bit.ly/izX6Q )

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“The true value of a human being is determined primarily by the measure and the sense in which he has attained to liberation from the self.” – Einstein One would think that the above quote would come from one of the East’s great sages, but instead it comes from one of the last centuries most celebrated physicists. In this episode Wes Nisker shares with us his understanding of the similarities and differences amongst the Eastern and Western approaches to knowledge. He uses the human brain and it’s two hemispheres as a metaphor for understanding these two different, and yet intimately related perspectives, and explores whether or not science is actually be a valid wisdom tradition. We also discuss issues of intelligent design and evolution, as well as what it’s like to look at the history of humanity through a “deep time” perspective. Enjoy this fast-paced and intellectually stimulating dialogue.

This is part 2 of a three-part series. Listen to Part 1: Atto, Zepto, and Yacto: The Buddhist Marx Brothers, and Part 3: Crazy Wisdom Saves the Day!

Episode Links:

• The Big Bang, The Buddha, and the Baby Boom ( http://bit.ly/D9jv7 )
• Einstein: His Life and Universe ( http://bit.ly/aEW2wV )
• Einstein and Buddha: The Parallel Sayings ( http://bit.ly/Sm6v7 )

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What would it be like if we were able to extend the silence & clarity of the meditative mind into our relationships? Would this impact how we listen, what we say, and even how we perceive reality? Gregory Kramer, teacher of a unique interpersonal meditation called Insight Dialogue, claims that it does this and much more. In this dialogue we find out about the specifics of the Insight Dialogue practice, covering each of the six steps of this practice (see below), as well as exploring what it’s like to be on a retreat where both individual and interpersonal contemplation takes place.

The six steps of Insight Dialogue:

Pause

Relax

Open

Trust

Emergence

Listen Deeply

Speak the Truth

This is Part 2 of a two-part series. Listen to Part 1, Interpersonal Meditation: Awakening as Relational Beings.

Episode Links:

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

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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 )

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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 )

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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 )

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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 )

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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.

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